


Leave a Light On

by Lilbreck



Series: Enough to Make it Light in the Dark [1]
Category: Vampire Diaries (TV)
Genre: Gen, Incest, Minor Alaric Saltzman/Jenna Sommers, Minor Bonnie Bennett/Jeremy Gilbert, Minor Character Death, Minor Elena Gilbert/Stefan Salvatore, Minor Elijah Mikaelson/Klaus Mikaelson, Minor Greta Martin/Klaus Mikaelson/Maddox (Vampire Diaries), Time Travel
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-09-10
Updated: 2016-09-27
Packaged: 2017-12-26 04:32:21
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 21
Words: 82,905
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/961606
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lilbreck/pseuds/Lilbreck
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Bonnie needs Caroline's help to change what has gone wrong and sends her back to shortly after the Salvatore brothers came to Mystic Falls. Heavily Caroline-centric, though it also features Bonnie and Sheila POV's</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. We Will Not Pass This Way Again

**Author's Note:**

> As always, thank you to my wonderful beta, Gabrielle. This time more so than others, since she's being forced to read fanfic for a show she has no interest in watching.

It said a lot about a person’s life when they barely batted a carefully curled eyelash as their friend’s little brother led them down into the dank school basement to visit the body of their best friend.

Okay, Caroline had done a hell of a lot more than bat an eyelash when Jeremy had told her that Bonnie was dead. There had been tears, and denials, and even talk of how they could bring her back to life. Jeremy had calmly listened to it all and waited for her to a get ahold of herself. When he said that Bonnie wanted to talk to her, she cleaned up her face and reapplied her makeup –Bonnie obviously had enough to worry about, she didn’t have to see Caroline looking like she had been dragged through hell as well—and told Jeremy to lead the way.

When she asked Jeremy why they were heading to the school he explained that that’s where Bonnie had died.

“And you couldn’t have moved her somewhere better?”

Caroline could hear both anger and guilt in his voice when he bit back, “This isn’t exactly Sunnydale. There aren’t a lot of places to hide a dead body, and people might notice me carrying around my dead girlfriend.”

It was, of course, the least important part of his statement that caught Caroline’s attention and she spoke without thinking.

“You two got back together?”

Jeremy vaguely shrugged and told her that it was complicated. Luckily, Caroline managed to hold in her thoughts about ghost fetishes as they pulled up to the school. As they descended into the basement, she quickly lost the ability to think about anything beyond the current situation.

She noticed Bonnie… She noticed the body right away. In fact, it took a lot to focus on anything beyond the body of her friend. But Jeremy had brought her here for a reason, and it wasn’t to grieve.

“We set up a circle and got everything ready. All you have to do is put this on your eyelids, lay down in the circle, and I’ll light the candles. You go to sleep, and then Bonnie can talk to you.”

Caroline turned to Jeremy, taking the plastic bowl he held out. She could feel the snark and questions bubbling up out of her and while she knew she should probably be quiet, she had never really learned to hold her tongue. When times got stressful, Caroline was driven to ask questions. The only way to control a situation was to know everything and talk it out. The snark? That was simply who she was.

“First of all, that’s a pentagram, not a circle. Second of all, Bonnie can talk to me? And, of course, third of all, why does this smell like blood?”

She could practically see Jeremy swallow down the urge to snap at her. One day she would have to tell him how much she appreciated it. However, right then didn’t seem like a good time.

“I figured saying circle would sound less… ominous. This,” he continued, slightly raising the bowl, “smells like blood because it is blood –my blood, to be specific—mixed with a few other things. It will, along with a bit of magic on my end and a lot of magic on Bonnie’s end, allow you to see and speak to her like I can.”

Taking the bowl of blood-and-whatever from him, she nodded and allowed herself one last question, albeit asked with a less aggressive tone.

“And the sleeping?”

Jeremy gave a small smile like he knew the small skirmish was over.

“Your mind is more open when you’re asleep. You accept things that would seem out of the ordinary if you were awake.”

With another nod and a deep breath, Caroline walked over to the ‘circle’ and sat gingerly in the center. Wrinkling up her nose, she closed her eyes and dabbed the contents of the little bowl over her lids, then lay down. She tried to concentrate on relaxing her body as she listened to Jeremy walk around her, lighting the candles. Her lips quirked up and she felt her eyes begin to water behind her lids when the thought popped up that Bonnie could have simply lit them all at once with her mind.

Caroline was just about to give in to the urge to speak and dispel her oncoming grief when she heard Jeremy exhale forcefully and felt something like fine dust settle over her face. For a moment, she felt like her brain had shifted ever so slightly to the left, and then the floor seemed to be rotating. Feeling slightly nauseous, she rolled over to her side and gasped for breath. 

When she opened her eyes, it wasn’t the brick walls of the school basement that greeted her. She was back home and lying on her bed. But the best part was that Bonnie was there also, lying down, facing her. Reaching out, she traced her fingers down the side of Bonnie’s face, unable to stop the tears from falling from her eyes.

“You’re not supposed to be dead, you know. We’re supposed to be roommates in college, and sisters forever, and you’re supposed to fall in love and have babies I can spoil.”

Bonnie grasped Caroline’s free hand and gave a watery smile.

“I know. I didn’t mean to leave you –any of you—I just didn’t see any other way. But it didn’t work out right, Caroline. It all went to hell like it always seems to.”

With a deep breath and a firm nod, Bonnie sat up and seemed to pull herself together. Trying to bury the sense of unease growing within her, Caroline sat up as well.

“We can’t make this go right from where we are. Too much has gone wrong and anyone that could help is either scattered to the winds, dead, incapacitated, or too caught up in a dysfunctional relationship. But I have a plan. It’s dangerous, though, and I don’t even know if it will work. We could all end up right back where we are now.”

Feeling like she was missing something big, Caroline grabbed onto Bonnie’s hand to get her attention.

“Bonnie, what are you talking about? What’s going on that we need help so badly?”

Turning fully toward her, Bonnie took a deep breath and looked into her friend’s eyes.

“Caroline, Silas isn’t down like I thought. He’s walking around pretending to be Stefan. He’s getting too powerful and I haven’t been able to do anything from this side.”

Caroline couldn’t stop the gasp that escaped her. How long had Stefan been gone? How long had an imposter been playing at being her friend? How could she have missed something so big? Reining herself in, Caroline let go of what she couldn’t change and gave her full attention to Bonnie.

 “What do we need to do?”

She listened with a mixture of growing trepidation and grim determination as Bonnie laid out her plan.

It was relatively simple; she was supposed to go back and make everything right. Try to keep as many people from dying as she could all while not fucking up the balance of the universe too much. No pressure or anything.

Ultimately, however, she was going back for one thing: She had to stop Silas from rising or find a way to kill him before he was able to fully awaken.

“I’m going to try and send you back as far as I can. I haven’t figured out a way to give you all the information you’d need that I just don’t have. Maybe if I had more time… But I can give you what I know now.”

Getting up from the bed, Bonnie grabbed a pen and notepad and began writing. As she did so, she explained what she was writing.

“This is a list of objects you’re going to need to get ahold of, and events that are going to _have_ to take place. People that will be important and people that you should avoid.”

She looked up and into Caroline’s eyes, almost apologetically.

“You’re going to have to make sure that Klaus breaks his curse. There are ways to do it without anyone having to die permanently, but I don’t know the details. You’re going to have to figure out everything on your own. I wish I could help you more, but I’m desperate and we don’t have any time.”

Caroline covered Bonnie’s now shaking hand with her own and tried to will confidence into her friend. A question occurred to her then that she wasted no time in asking.

“Are there any rules against telling people what’s going on? I mean, we’re already drastically changing timelines. Is there a reason it has to be a huge secret? You know, beyond avoiding any long talks with doctors who know nothing about the supernatural?”

The question stopped Bonnie and she genuinely looked like she had never thought of it.

“Well… no, there’s no reason you can’t tell someone.”

Caroline offered a reassuring smile as she gently rubbed one of Bonnie’s shoulders.

“Then I don’t have to figure out everything on my own. You’ll give me all you can, and then I can get help when I get back there. You’ll even be one of the people helping me.”

Glancing down at the notepad her friend was holding, Caroline tried to get them back on track.

“So, I’m going to wake up in the past clutching a list of random objects, people, and events. Am I even going to remember what’s going on?”

Taking her cue from Caroline, Bonnie continued to write and explained that, since this was a dream, she wasn’t actually writing on the paper, she was writing this list directly into Caroline’s memory. She would retain her memories of this timeline as a vampire, though they would start to fade rather quickly if she was human.

“If you go back to before you were a vampire, you’re going to have to find a way to get turned quickly.”

Just as Caroline began to mentally catalog the ways she could get herself turned into a vampire, she heard the sound of movement from behind her. Whipping around and getting up off the bed, she stood between Bonnie and their uninvited guest.

“Last time I checked, I did not have an open dream policy where Mikaelson brothers were concerned.”

Kol smirked from where he was comfortably leaning against her bedroom door.

“Now, darling, there’s no need for alarm. I’m not here to hurt the little witch. Quite the contrary, in fact. I’m here to offer my services.”

Knowing that any deal from his family came with strings firmly attached, Caroline wasn’t quick to jump at his offer. Still, it was probably best to get him to expose what he wanted from them.

“And what, exactly, would you be getting out of this?”

Slowly moving away from the doorjamb, Kol stepped over to Caroline’s dresser. Picking up the framed picture of Bonnie, Caroline, and Elena, he began answering her question as he ran his fingers along the edge of the frame.

“I get to make sure that none of my family –myself included—dies and ensure that Silas _does_ die.”

Putting the picture back gently, he turned back to them with a serious expression on his face.

“All you have to do, Caroline, is make sure that the dagger is removed from me as soon as possible and tell me what you’re planning. I can then share everything I know about Silas and how his followers operate, and I can even help you find and kill the bastard.”

Caroline had a feeling that he was leaving out something. As tempting as it was to just blow him off, her gut told her that –whatever was really going on—she needed to know about it sooner rather than later.

“It would only make sense for me to try and get as much help as possible and, given that I know from your terrorizing of Jeremy that you know all about Silas, it would also only make sense that I would go to you for information. So what’s this really about?”

Looking down with a slight chuckle and a shake of his head, Kol made his way over to the open closet to absently play with the scarves hanging on the door.

“I can see why my brother fancies you.”

At this he glanced back over at Caroline.

“Or, would it be better to say, ‘why he’s so in love with you’? You are right, though, there is a bit more to the story. The twelve witches you killed aren’t too keen on this mission. They don’t have any faith in you –understandably so, I think you could agree. They have enough power to mess up Bonnie’s little spell.

“I’ve managed to earn their trust and, if I should express my faith in your ability and willingness to truly kill Silas and make everything right, they won’t mess things up. In fact, they’d be willing to lend their power to the cause.”

This was the part where all the cards were laid out. Caroline figured that, since he led with what he could do for them, then whatever came next was more important to him than ending Silas or even getting the dagger out of his past self. Before she could tell him to cut to the chase, Bonnie spoke up.

“I doubt you’re willing to do this out of the goodness of your heart or because you’ve suddenly developed a fondness for us. What do you want in return, Kol?”

Closing the distance to Caroline’s bed in long strides, Kol grabbed the pad and pen that Bonnie had left and flipped to the next page. He turned to fully face them as he held the pen above the paper as if ready to begin writing.

“So, how this works is, I write down something in here, and it’s engraved on her memory, right? So, I write a little message to my past self, and she can be a good little messenger vamp and deliver it for me. Nothing dangerous, or even particularly difficult. I’ll also write a little personal fact here so that I’ll know it’s really a message from me and not some hoax a pretty young thing is trying to pull. Sound fair?”

A small shot of alarm ran through Caroline and she quickly turned to Bonnie.

“He can’t, like, brainwash me that way, can he?”

Bonnie’s eyes widen slightly at the thought, but she turned and put a re-assuring hand on Caroline’s arm.

“The words will be in your memory, but you’ll be able to tell they aren’t yours. It would be like walking into your room and seeing someone else’s jacket on your bed. It’s there, but you know it’s not yours. It will have a different _feel_ or _smell_ or something.”

They both turned at Kol’s small chuckle.

“Done this often, have you?”

With a slight sneer, Bonnie turned to him and rolled her eyes.

“I’ve talked with witches who have. Now, exactly what message are you wanting Caroline to deliver?”

With a small shift of the pen and notepad in his hands, Kol gave Caroline a questioning glance. At her reluctant nod, he began to write. As he did, he also began to speak in a carefully detached tone that let Caroline know that he was serious about what was in the message.

“I just want a small bit of information delivered. It’s a way of… rebuilding bridges and fixing my family. Do that for me…”

Walking toward Caroline, he handed her the notepad with a smile.

“And I’ll help you find and kill Silas.”

Looking at the message written on the notepad, Caroline couldn’t stop the small gasp that escaped her. She couldn’t fault him for his motives.

“I’ll deliver your message. Just… get the other witches to help.”

With a rueful smile, Kol shrugged.

“Already done, darling.”

At Caroline and Bonnie’s shocked and upset faces, Kol’s smile grew until he resembled a child who got caught with his hand in the cookie jar a few too many times.

“Whispering the ways I’m going to kill her into the ear of a girl who can’t hear me got old really quickly. I spent a great deal of time watching the lot of you. I knew that you wouldn’t mind doing something so simple in return for my help. Especially now that you and my brother are… _friends_.”

The last was said with a world full of innuendo. Honestly, Caroline was getting tired of everyone commenting about what was going on between her and Klaus. Not that there was anything to comment on. Whatever.

As childish as it was, she took the time to stick her tongue out at Kol’s retreating back. Turning back to Bonnie, she took a deep breath.

“Are we ready?”

Bonnie nodded her head, then gasped. She then relaxed and looked slightly more confident.

“The witches are on board, apparently. Now, I can’t be sure of _exactly_ what time I’m sending you back to, but I can narrow it down to before the twelve witches died but after Stefan arrived in town.”

At Caroline’s questioning look, Bonnie explained further.

“Stefan arriving is about the time my powers started to kick in. It’s the easiest time for me to focus on. Their death is easiest for the other witches to focus on. We just need to aim closer to my focus.”

Leaning in, Bonnie gave Caroline a strong and desperate-feeling hug.

“I know you can do this, Caroline. If anyone can figure out how to re-organize time so that it comes out with less death and destruction, it’s you.”

Leaning back to look in Caroline’s eyes, Bonnie gave her a very serious look.

“I’m going to try and aim for before you met Damon. I can’t guarantee it, but I’m going to try. You ready?”

With a forced smile and a nod, Caroline braced herself. 

 “And me without a blue box or an alien with a hot accent,” she said, unable to resist one last comment as she felt Bonnie’s hands on her temples and the world started to fade away.

“I love you, Caroline.”


	2. Not Quite the Beginning

Caroline’s senses slowly came into focus again. The first thing she noticed was that she was lying face down in the grass. Her body felt heavy, almost like she had been drugged with vervain or bitten by a hybrid, and there was a pain in her neck that was all too familiar. She was either a vampire lying in the woods on her eighteenth birthday, or she was a human and suffering from the after-effects of one of Damon’s tantrums.

Opening her eyes and slowly pushing herself into a sitting position, she discovered it was nighttime and that she was at Lockwood Manor. Given the lights and the distant sounds of talking, there was obviously a party going on. A glint of moonlight off something in the grass caught her eye and, as she began to painfully crawl over to investigate, she got an intense feeling of déjà vu. Lifting up the necklace that had caught her attention and running her thumb over the amber jewel in her hand, she felt irritation spread through her. She was human again.

“Not exactly the beginning we were hoping for, is it, Bonnie?”

Standing up with both the necklace and her clutch in hand, she sighed deeply and then shoved all her negativity into a box in the back of her head. She could deal with this; she could make it work for her.

“Caroline?”

Slipping the necklace into her purse, Caroline went over what she remembered from the night as she waited for Elena to reach her.

“There you are. I’ve been looking everywhere for you.”

Lost in her memories, she didn’t answer Elena right away, which seemed to worry the other girl.

“Are you okay?”

Shaking her head to clear it of the memories, Caroline turned to her friend. She couldn’t help but smile at what she saw. This was Elena as she should be; human and without the cares of the world on her back. Granted, a bit worried right now and, if memory served, upset at Stefan, but still very human and caring. If Caroline had any say in it, this is how her friend would stay.

“Yeah, I’m fine. In fact, I’m better than I have been in a while.”

She couldn’t stop herself from reaching out a hand to gently squeeze Elena’s shoulder.

“You don’t have to worry about me, Elena. I can take care of myself.”

Her mind jumped around looking for something to distract Elena from the worry and concern her expression was showing. Her mind latched onto the memory that Damon was currently being locked up in the Salvatore basement. Caroline chuckled scrunched up her face in mock embarrassment.

“I may need a ride home, though. My date seems to have pulled a disappearing act.”

The ride to her house was very quiet. She knew Elena had a lot on her mind and was probably very confused about everything. From what she could piece together from snatches of conversation with Stefan and Elena –that now hadn’t yet happened, and she just knew that was going to get confusing as hell –Elena still didn’t know about vampires at this point.

While she would have to find out soon enough, it wasn’t going to be from Caroline. Bonnie, however, was going to have to find out very quickly. A night’s rest, and then she would head over to Bonnie’s and convince her that they absolutely had to visit her Grams. After all, Caroline was a very smart young woman, and smart young women knew when they needed all the help they could get. Thankfully, it was a town holiday that apparently warranted there being a three day weekend.

First item on the agenda: Make sure that whatever hold Damon had on her mind that hadn’t been broken by having a future version of her shoved into this body could be neutralized. Second item: Convince a couple of vampire-hating Bennett witches that her becoming a vampire was all for the best. Third item: Find out where the moonstone was hidden and snatch it up before Katherine could get her claws on it.

Katherine.

Caroline’s mind was preoccupied with the first doppelgänger when Elena pulled up to her house. She said goodnight, got out of the car, and walked toward her front door. As she did so, she mentally weighed the pros and cons of trusting the woman who had, in another lifetime, smothered her in her hospital bed.

If she could somehow manage to trap her in the vampire tomb and then just convince her that her best chance of survival was to cooperate… That could be a long shot. However, none of it could be done in even relative safety until she talked to Bonnie’s grandma and became a vampire again. A good night’s rest was definitely in order, however, rest was something Caroline knew she wouldn’t be getting that night. She had never really developed the ability to sleep on an unfinished plan –at least not until she was falling over and delirious from exhaustion.

Grabbing a pen and notebook from her bedside table, Caroline sat down on her bed and prepared for a long night’s work, making sure to set her alarm clock so she could catch Bonnie early in the morning. First order of business: writing down everything Bonnie and Kol had put in her memory, though Kol’s contribution went on a sheet of paper all its own and was placed in the back of her side-table drawer.

Countless plans were made, revised, and ultimately scrapped. By the time the morning sun began to shine through her windows, Caroline was surrounded by nearly the whole notebook’s worth of crumpled up pages. Her alarm’s buzzing distracted her from the frustration of her current doomed-to-fail plan. After silencing the clock, she quickly gathered all the discarded paper and threw it in the kitchen trash and then grabbed the keys to her mother’s car.

Returning to her room, she picked up the list she had compiled from Bonnie’s information. As she stared at it, she came to the decision that –for now—Bonnie would have to be left out of the loop. Going straight to Sheila Bennett would save her the trouble of having to explain the supernatural world to Bonnie and prove its existence, leaving more time to explain to Sheila that she had been sent back in time as well as to prove _that_. And, of course, there was the small matter of getting a couple of witches to help her become a vampire.

No pressure.

Taking a deep breath, Caroline –still in last night’s party dress—decided to do this one step at a time. Starting with a shower. 

During the shower, getting dressed, shoving her to-do list in a purse, and the drive, Caroline kept running over possibilities and ways everything could go wrong. As she pulled into Sheila’s driveway, she came to at least one conclusion: She was going to have to network her cute little ass off to be able to do everything that needed to be done.

Caroline began to feel nervousness balling up her stomach as she made her way to Sheila’s porch. She was sure that karma and the universe were off together having a laugh at her expense. She could clearly remember mocking the older woman; some of that mockery may have involved references to too much alcohol. Caroline had a feeling that there might be apologizing due, possibly even groveling. She could handle that. An awful person she might have been, but she was not about to let her pride get in the way of saving her best friend. And stopping a supernatural apocalypse, too, of course.

Caroline took a deep breath and raised her fist to knock. However, before she could do so, Sheila opened the door with an amused smile.

“Caroline Forbes, what brings you here?”

She had mentally prepared a speech that she was convinced would have the woman in front of her convinced and more than willing to help. Unfortunately, when she opened her mouth, that speech wasn’t what came out.

“Some apologizing. A little bit of groveling. Some outrageous, yet true, tales to tell. And, sprinkled all in there, probably some begging.”

With a raised eyebrow Sheila opened the front door further and motioned for Caroline to come in. Getting in the front door didn’t actually lesson Caroline’s nerves. In fact, it made her even more anxious. She sat down on the couch with what she hoped was a winning smile. When she saw a shot glass set down deliberately on the coffee table accompanied by a _very_ sardonic raised eyebrow, her smile slipped a bit as she realized how true her comments at the front door had been.

Turning her smile back up a few notches, Caroline jumped right in the deep end with, “So, we’ll start right in with the apologizing and work our way to the groveling, then?”

Once she began, the words just kept pouring out. There were times when she wasn’t even aware of what she was saying, she just knew that she had to get the story out. It didn’t seem to have the desired effect on Sheila, however. Aside from a few moments of confusion, and a small moment of pleasure as she drank the tea that she had brought out for both of them, she mostly wore an expression that lived somewhere between amused and contemptuous. When Caroline stopped talking and just looked at her, she put down the mug she had been drinking from.

“So, how exactly did you convince Bonnie to go along with your idea to play a prank on her ‘drunken old grams’?”

Caroline’s confused expression seemed to only anger her, and Sheila stood up and walked around to the other side of the coffee table, as if she need the barrier to keep herself from shaking the teenager. Crossing her arms, she spoke with a pinched expression and an angry tone. 

“Do not sit there and even think about lying to me, young lady! I can hear Bonnie’s voice in your words as sure as if she was sitting there with you.”

Caroline could feel the tears start to well up in her eyes as she realized that she was going to get no help here. A night of relentless planning and no sleep left her without the will to push through. Pressing her fingers to her temples, she begged for the one thing she thought that Sheila might help her with.

“You aren’t going to help me because you don’t believe me. I get it, it’s a crazy story. Just… can you at least give me a way not to go running when Damon Salvatore calls?”

Perhaps some of her distress registered as genuine, because the woman across from her looked a little less pissed off.

“He’s been feeding on me, and using me, and…”

She was overwhelmed by memories of painful bites she had been compelled not react to and of the fear she had not been allowed to feel, though it should have been there by all rights. Pushing them down, Caroline continued.

“He’s been compelling me. They’ve got him locked up, but I know he’s going to call for me, and I know I’m not going to be able to stop.”

Looking up at Sheila, she couldn’t stop the tears from falling.

“Please, I don’t want to go to him.”

As much as the part of Caroline that had told Stefan that she wasn’t ‘girly little Caroline anymore’ would like it to be otherwise, she wasn’t faking anything. Right now, the thought of being forced to go to Damon –especially as a human—was absolutely terrifying. She thought she had gotten past this. The nightmares had gone and she pretended that it wasn’t as bad as it had been, just like everyone wanted. She could only blame the sudden resurgence of pain and fear on the shock of being human again.

Her tears continued to stream down her face, even as Sheila crossed over to the couch, sat down next to her, and took her hands. As soon as they made contact, a warmth flooded through Caroline and her eyes involuntarily closed. All at once it seemed as if everything would be all right, because that warmth was familiar. It was summer days and running through the grass pretending she could fly. It was being wrapped up in her mother’s arms for the first time in forever and not having to hide what she had become. It was love and acceptance. It was…

A sudden, startled gasp and the disappearance of warmth interrupted her thoughts. When she opened her eyes, she was brought up short by the wide-eyed shock on Sheila’s face. She was so thrown by that expression that she barely noticed the trembling hands that were making their way to the sides of her head.

With a shaking voice, Sheila explained, “I just need to look into your mind, Caroline. Just… I need to see…”

When it became obvious that the woman wasn’t going to explain what it was she needed to see, Caroline nodded. She had come here for Sheila’s help, after all, even if this wasn’t all the help she had been looking for.

She felt slightly clammy hands brace on either side of her head, followed shortly by a rush of memories. These memories weren’t of her human life, though. These were memories of seeing Bonnie’s dead body and talking to her in the dream. Those memories came to an abrupt halt, though, as Sheila jerked back.

“You were telling the truth. Oh, good lord, sweetie, you were telling the truth.” 

Shaking her head and holding her hand over her heart, Sheila continued, “It wasn’t just you that came back, though. There’s a part of her in you, enough of my Bonnie that I could feel it.”

Caroline didn’t stop herself from reaching out to Sheila and wrapping her arms around the woman’s shoulders when she began to cry, her hand over her mouth holding back sobs. Her own fears about Damon’s inevitable pull on her were quickly buried under the need to comfort someone who felt the loss of her best friend even more keenly than she did.

When she could no longer stand to simply hold Sheila and not _do_ something to ease her pain, Caroline reached a hand up and gently turned her head so that she could stare into her eyes, hoping she would understand how seriously Caroline took the promise she was about to make.

“I’m going to stop it from happening. She’s not going to die. There are a lot of people who aren’t going to die this time, but she is my top priority.”

Collecting herself, Sheila reached out and grasped Caroline’s hand, moving it to her lap, and held it tightly.

“ _We_ are going to stop it.”

Standing up and grabbing the mugs that sat on the coffee table in front of them, she started toward the kitchen, turning once to address Caroline.

“First, I’m going to refill our cups and pull myself together, then you’re going to show me that list of yours and we’re going to start planning.”

For the first time since she had set out that morning, Caroline really began to feel hope. She wasn’t alone in this, just like she had promised Bonnie she wouldn’t be. Though, if she understood Sheila correctly, Bonnie had made sure of that by sending part of herself back as well.

Even if Caroline hadn’t been determined to stop Bonnie from dying before this revelation, she would have been now. Along with thoughts of how strong and yet prone to self-sacrifice her best friend was, a new thought began to creep in. The Bonnie who had sent her back was a very different version of the Bonnie she would be interacting with now. While they had been friends before, there was a bond that had developed between them that, while Caroline could still feel it as strong as ever, Bonnie wouldn’t feel at all.

Before she could think too much further on it, Sheila came back in carrying a tray with their mugs, a notebook, and some pencils on it.

“I figured we could write out what we need to do. Unless things have changed drastically between now and when you come from, the Caroline I know is very big on organization and writing out plans.”

There was a more than small part of Caroline that felt like the lowest scum on earth right now. Obviously, Sheila paid attention to what went on in her granddaughter’s life, and Caroline had just dismissed her as a drunken, tin-foil-hat-wearing flake. Caroline took a deep breath and reminded herself that regret did nothing to change the past so it was best to simply change the behaviors that caused that regret.

“First, I should make a list of all the things we need to collect and all the people we need to either keep an eye on or get on our side.”

Eyes widening, Caroline remembered the amber necklace that she still had from the night before. Picking her purse up from where it sat at her feet, she removed the necklace and held it out to Sheila.

“Damon took this from the Lockwood place last night.”

Watching as Sheila gasped and reached out to take hold of it, Caroline continued, “I know it belongs to your family. I also know that it was used to seal twenty some vampires in a tomb here in Mystic Falls almost a hundred and fifty years ago.”

As Sheila looked up, still clutching the talisman in her hands, Caroline decided to take a risk and hope that Bonnie’s gram really trusted her.

“I know you’re going to want to give this to Bonnie, and I totally get that. But we need to find a way to contact Emily and make sure she doesn’t come back to destroy it. She powered up this talisman using a passing comet. The same comet passed over earlier this month, activating the talisman which would enable it to be used to release those same vampires, just as Emily had intended.”

At this, a look of confusion passed over Sheila’s face. Before she could ask any questions, Caroline interrupted her.

“I know, why would Emily want the vampires set free? Apparently, Damon asked her to do this to save Katherine, the vampire I told you about who looks exactly like Elena. In exchange, he was supposed to protect her children.”

Picking up her mug and taking a drink –being human again made long conversations a bit more difficult—Caroline continued her story.

“Anyway, Emily realized… or is _going_ to realize that releasing all those vampires on Mystic Falls is a very dangerous thing. She will then possess Bonnie and destroy the talisman. However, this won’t stop Damon from forcing you and Bonnie to open the tomb without the talisman.”

At this, Caroline stopped. She really couldn’t bring herself to tell the woman sitting next to her that this was how she died. Fortunately, Sheila was both intelligent, and in possession of a cool head.

“I ended up dying from it, I assume.”

Caroline could only nod.

“So then I also assume you have a plan to not only open the tomb, but do it in a way that won’t get a lot of people killed. So, let’s hear it.”

Caroline and Sheila spent the greater part of the afternoon trying to put together workable plans for getting everything they needed and also making those plans work together. They also spent a great deal of time debating who needed to know what, and when they needed to know it. They were both in agreement that Bonnie needed to know everything as soon as possible.

She had a feeling that convincing Bonnie might not be all that easy.


	3. I Woke Up a Sinner, You Walked Out the Door

Caroline was exhausted, and it wasn't just from lack of sleep. She had been right when she thought that getting Bonnie to believe what was going on wouldn't be easy. It had taken Sheila physically grabbing Bonnie's arm and forcing her to grab hold of her friend to get her to admit that _something_ at least had changed.

The same warmth that had come over her when she was in contact with Sheila once again was there when Bonnie's hand covered her arm. As she looked into Bonnie's eyes, she finally figured out that the warmth was home. It was family.

After retelling her story –or rather, the bare bones of her story—and shedding a few tears over what had been lost, she left Bonnie and Sheila as they started to talk about the basics of magic. That really wasn't her area, and she had some family bonding to get an early start with, as well as some much needed sleep to finally catch up on.

Caroline entered her home and headed straight toward the kitchen, pausing only long enough to throw her purse on her bed after taking out her cell phone. Since the sheriff's squad car hadn't been in the drive when she pulled in, it was a safe bet her mother wasn't home yet, which meant that dinner definitely hadn't been started. Standing in front of the open cupboards, she dialed her mother's number and tried to decide what they should eat.

Later that night, still trying to swallow down the lump in her throat from the surprise and suspicion in her mother's voice and face at the unplanned and rare family night, she got ready for sleep and crawled into bed. Across town, while Caroline was dreaming of time paradoxes and the difference between what had happened and what was yet to happen, Sheila was pulling up in front of the Salvatore boarding house. On the passenger's seat, there was a black medical bag that contained some supplies she had procured from the hospital by less than ethical means.

Time was short and the necessity was high. There were a hand full of very powerful vampires on the way, and what they were doing would save lives and, hopefully, keep them from having to fight said vampires.

Pushing down the memory of her daughter running away from the fallout of such a fight, Sheila brought herself firmly back to the here and now. Grabbing the bag, she got out of the car and strode purposefully to the front door. This was not a time for doubt or fear, she had to make sure this vampire knew better than to cross her or her family. Regardless of how glowing Caroline's praises were, this was a different version of Stefan Salvatore.

With that in mind, Sheila didn't bother with knocking. In a show of power meant to intimidate, she forced the doors to open before she was near them, catching the approaching vampire by surprise. Pulling an air of superiority and condescension around her that she usually reserved for students who thought they could get an easy grade by taking her class, she walked through the doorway and past a very confused Stefan.

As she strode through the hallway and into the front room, she reached out with her senses and could feel him behind her like a cold void. She experienced a small pang at the thought of having Caroline feel like that. She mentally pushed down the thought with the knowledge that it was all for the greater good. She had to trust that, whatever else had happened to Bonnie, she hadn't been so far gone that she would send back someone who couldn't handle being a vampire.

"Let's skip the part where you pretend you don't know what I am."

Sitting down on a couch, she indicated the one across from her with a slight tilt of her head. When he sat down and raised an enquiring eyebrow at her –it could have been projecting, but she chose to believe it was an arrogant and condescending eyebrow raise—she placed the medical bag on the coffee table between them.

"We're also going to skip past the part where you try and pretend you're not a vampire. I'm not here to run you out of town, since I have it on very good authority that any trouble we've been having around here is not your doing. However, you being allowed to stay here and play at being a high-school student comes at a price. Specifically, your blood. It's a onetime transaction, non-negotiable."

With this she pushed the bag closer to Stefan, and he automatically reached for it. Opening it, he pulled out the red topped collection tube, tourniquet, and syringe. Putting the items back in the bag, he looked up at Sheila.

"What exactly will you be using this for?"

With her own raised eyebrow and a quirk of her lips she answered honestly, if a bit dryly, "Avoiding a small war, preventing a supernatural meltdown, and saving lives."

Stefan gave a small laugh and nodded his head as if to say that he didn't believe her but would play along.

"All of that with one dose of blood?"

Sheila tilted her head to acknowledge the absurdity of her answer before leaning forward a bit.

"The blood is just the first step, the rest you don't need to worry about." Gesturing toward the bag, she continued, "Now, can you do that yourself, or do you need some help?"

It turned out that Stefan was perfectly able to draw his own blood. When he was done, Sheila took the filled tube from him, placing it back in the bag while leaving the remainder of what she had brought for him to dispose of. Standing up, she held out her hand to shake, just to get her own feel for him. As his hand closed over hers, she felt a bone-deep chill that still lacked any malice.

"I'll trust you not to harm anyone in this town. However, if the vampire who is currently wasting away in your basement manages to get out and hurt Caroline, or anyone, again, you and he will have one pissed off witch to answer to.

"Also, you might want to convince Zach, who I know damn well is listening in, to take a vacation. Things are about to get very dangerous around here, especially for the family of anyone supernatural."

She turned toward the front hallway, where Zach was just coming around the corner with a sheepish look on his face.

"I'm going to need your number, though, in case I need you to invite anyone in." She interrupted his protest, "If I call you, Salvatore, follow my instructions to the letter, because it will be a life or death matter."

Knowing that she had said all she had come to say, she headed for the front door. However, she couldn't resist the urge to keep Stefan on his toes. Turning back with a completely deadpan expression, she fired one last parting shot.

"And those couches are absolutely hideous. You should really look into replacing them."

The entire car ride home Sheila wrestled with the thought of helping Caroline turn. It wasn't even her becoming a vampire that truly weighed on the witch's conscious, it was the thought of all the responsibility the teenager was taking on. She was just a baby; she should be thinking about boys, and clothes, and school, not breaking curses, saving lives, and preventing a supernatural shit storm from raining down on the world.

Staring at her own face in the mirror as she brushed her teeth, she had to question if she was really doing what was best, or if she was just being selfish. Was she only going along with this and letting Caroline take on this load so that she and her granddaughter would live? There was no way that she would be able to answer that question herself. As she slipped underneath her covers, she decided to have a long talk with the girl and see if there wasn't another way to do this.

Morning found Sheila still unsure about how right it was to let Caroline do all the heavy lifting. However, the girl in question was as far from unsure as anyone could get. Having been woken up by a phone call from Bonnie in which she was promised that her best friend would not leave her side during the upcoming car wash, she was no longer afraid of the looming specter of Damon Salvatore.

She even had a decent plan to snag the Gilbert watch from Elena's house. Granted, she would be using a combination of steamrolling over any objections to having girl's day and playing the sympathy card, but it was all for a good cause. All she needed to do was convince Elena to make a quick run for some random thing while Caroline stayed back to get everything ready for their female bonding. 

Caroline hadn't counted on the sick feeling in the pit of her stomach as Elena gave her pitying looks and kept eyeing the places that she knew had bruises and bites. It was because of that feeling that she really didn't have to fake the quaver in her voice or the water in her eyes. When it became too much, she told Elena that she needed a minute to herself and asked if Elena could make a run for the dip that she forgot.

Hearing the front door close behind her friend, Caroline took a deep breath and headed to Jeremy's room. Ignoring the overwhelming smell of teenage boy and sweaty clothes –was it an unwritten law that boys were not allowed to actually remove dirty laundry from their rooms?—Caroline searched as quickly as she could. After what seemed like forever, but was probably only ten minutes, she found it pretty much out in the open. Seriously?

By the time Elena got back, Caroline was camped out on the living room couch with everything set up –save the dip of course. The day went pretty smoothly after that, disregarding the _looks_ Elena would constantly give her. By the time she left for home, she had remembered why she and Elena were friends, even if they were not best friends.

The fun night was interrupted when she got a call from Sheila letting her know that she had the vampire blood they needed and a plan for how to turn her without anyone being the wiser. Caroline would be lying if she said that she wasn't relieved to have someone else helping her plan everything out. Especially considering that her plan had been to use the Gilbert watch to find a vampire to capture and drain. Not the most brilliant plan, but she was working with what she had while trying not to involve Stefan any sooner than necessary.

She got home that night just in time to find her mom cooking dinner. When Liz nervously explained that she was cooking for two just in case Caroline got back in time, Caroline could feel the guilt curling in her stomach. Yes, at times she had been a crappy daughter, she could freely admit that. However, things were going to change a lot sooner this time around. Beginning with more time spent alone together without arguing.

"Since you're not working tomorrow, I figured we could do a picnic in the park for lunch, just you and me."

Her mother was a lot of things, but oblivious was never one of them. She set down her fork and she finished chewing the heavily lemon flavored chicken –which Caroline had managed not to point out because she _was_ committed to being a better daughter—and raised a very suspicious eyebrow at Caroline.

"Now, either you're a pod person, or something is very wrong. I know we haven't been close, but I'd like you to tell me if there is something bad enough that you feel the need to work this hard at being a family."

And there was the guilt again. She couldn't share everything with her mom –at least not yet—but she could do her best not to lie. However, she found herself unable to meet her mother's eyes as she began to explain.

"Recently, I've been through a very rough patch. Some very bad things have gone down that I will explain to you one day. Soon. Just… coming through the other side of it, I realized that there were a lot of things that I didn't like about myself."

At this point, though she knew it would probably lead to her crying, Caroline looked up at her mother to make sure that she knew this was a real thing, not just a passing phase.

"One of those things that I didn't like was how hard I made it for you to be my mom. I decided that I needed to change that."

When the tears started, Liz was up and around the table, throwing her arms around her daughter without hesitation. Caroline wrapped her arms around her mother in return prayed that she could keep this and not lose it after she turned and her mom found out. Pulling back and gently wiping under her eyes, she changed the subject with a slight laugh.

"Next weekend I won't be able to do this. Bonnie and I are doing a bonding weekend at her grams' house. I'm trying to be a better friend as well."

After the emotional interruption, dinner –and the rest of the evening—went on without incident. The next night, however, Caroline received an unwanted visitor.

She was talking on the phone with Tiki and doing a pretty good job of ignoring the fact that this was a conversation she had already been through when she heard a familiar, if roughened voice. Looking up into the mirror, she saw the shadow of a man. When she turned around and no one was there, she remembered all too well what was happening. Quickly getting off the phone, she made her way over to her bed and waited with the large throw she had placed there earlier and the cage she had bought for the occasion.

It didn't take long before Damon's pet crow showed up. Caroline didn't respond when it cawed at her, she only stared at it. When it got frustrated that she wasn't following, it flew over to land on her bed. She quickly threw the blanket over the bird and wrestled with it until she was sure there would be no escape. She then maneuvered the crow –blanket and all—into the cage at her feet. The entire time Caroline was attempting all of this, the crow never stopped cawing. The noise, of course, caught her mother's attention.

Thank goodness she was good at planning ahead. Her mother seemed a bit off-put by her daughter's story about a stalker crow and having plans to take it to the vet –because who knew if it was someone's pet—but she didn't seem suspicious.

One day, she wouldn't have to lie to her mom.

The following day at the car wash, just as Caroline had feared, Damon did try and call her. However, though she felt it, she was more than able to resist the pull. She and Bonnie both decided it had to be because of the part of Bonnie –the other Bonnie… future Bonnie… they really hadn't decided what to call her—had sent back with Caroline to protect her. They both also decided it would still be best to run their theory past Sheila.

"I do need to head over there, though, to make sure Zack doesn't go down to the basement and accidently free Damon."

At this, Bonnie shook her head and reassured Caroline, "No need. Grams convinced Zach that he needed to take a vacation. Though she did tell him that he needed to stay in touch for invite purposes. He drove out of town this morning."

Caroline didn't even bother to try to hide her impressed grin.

"Your grams is a bit of a badass, you know that."

Bonnie nodded solemnly, though the effect was spoiled by the grin trying to break through her serious facade.

"It's a Bennett trait."

There was a small moment of panic later on when Bonnie first drenched Tiki and then set fire to water and torched a car. Okay, maybe a bit more than a _small_ moment. More like a panicked fleeing quietly from the scene which Caroline covered for. Later that night, when Caroline dropped Damon’s crow off at Sheila’s, Bonnie was there. Bonnie let her know that she was fine and was now focusing on controlling her emotions in regards to her magic.

Caroline stopped herself from mentioning how much alike it was for new witches and new vampires when it came to that.

The rest of the week passed uneventfully. Caroline found herself relieved when she saw Vicki roaming the halls at school. When Bonnie noticed, she had to explain about what had happened to the other girl. She was quick to reassure her that there would be none of that this weekend.

"Vicki only had her instincts and a monster to guide her when she woke up not knowing what she was. I have experience with this, and I know exactly what I'm getting into. Plus, I have you and your grams there to help me!"

Though Caroline did her best to reassure Bonnie, she was haunted by the memory of how her friend had abandoned her before. She knew that it wasn't done maliciously, but it still hurt. She could only hope that the lack of killing would stop that from happening this time.

Wednesday found Sheila on her front porch wearing a lovely purple top and a very serious expression. After coffee was poured –the Forbes household did not run on tea—Sheila cut right to the chase. Apparently, Jeremy was right when he had said that this wasn't Sunnydale –adults didn't just casually hand over responsibility for saving the world to teenagers. When she began talking about how she didn't feel right leaving a teenager to do so much alone, Caroline had to stop her.

"The thing is, I'm _not_ doing this alone. When I first turned, no one was there to teach me how to control myself. No one was even there to tell me what I was. But this time around, I know what is going on."

Reaching across the table for Sheila's hands, Caroline continued, "I may be the one who was sent back with all this information, but I have you and Bonnie to help me figure out how to get this all to work. This is not a one woman show, so I need you to understand that you're not pushing off anything on me. We're in this together, you've made sure of that."

Sheila stayed a bit longer after that to explain the plan for the weekend. Apparently, the cover story was that Sheila was taking Bonnie to the college so she could see exactly what her grams did, and Caroline was there for moral support and to make sure that the two got enough shopping time in. The former was Sheila's idea, the later was Caroline's.

Early Friday evening, as she was downing a tube of Stefan's blood and watching Sheila prepare some vile concoction she promised would put Caroline to sleep and kill her before the blood could heal her, she found herself once again worried that Bonnie would not handle her turning very well. She quickly gulped down the fatal brew, handed the glass back to Sheila, and laid down. Holding out her hand to Bonnie and smiling when her friend squeezed tightly, she drifted off to sleep.

As Caroline's body died and the vampire blood went to work changing her, Sheila and Bonnie took turns watching over their friend. Someone had to be awake when she came to in order to ensure she drank from the blood bags they had been filling with their blood all this week. Bonnie hadn't felt right stealing the bags from the hospital, so they had compromised. In the early hours of the morning, Bonnie woke her grams up for their shift change and drifted off to sleep facing Caroline's sleeping –don't think dead, never think dead—body on the other bed.

When the dream came, it was vivid and awful. Bonnie made her way through a large and unfamiliar house. It felt like one of the ostentatious homes that the richer founding families would live in. Coming to a door at the end of a long corridor, she felt dread settle in. She knew that she didn't want to open the door, but she also knew that she had to face what was on the other side.

Quickly yanking open the door, Bonnie felt a scream catch in her throat. In the middle of the floor lay a black man who looked to be in his thirties. However, it was very hard to tell because of the blonde-haired woman crouched over him with her face buried in his neck as she growled. Bonnie tried to back out, but she must have made some noise, because the woman looked up.

It was Caroline.

It was Caroline, but it wasn't. It was a beast who may have once looked like Caroline, but no longer. Her eyes were somewhere between black and red and she had fangs. The worst part, though, was that her entire lower face was covered in blood. This wasn't Caroline, this was some demon impersonator, and she had helped it kill!

Bonnie's heart was pounding in her chest when she woke up. Blinking open her eyes, she was greeted with the sight of her grams handing a blood bag to Caroline. However, when Caroline turned, it wasn't the concerned face of a friend she saw. The only thing she could see was Caroline's face covered in blood as she crouched over her victim.

Scrambling off side of the bed farthest from her best friend, Bonnie stood for a moment, frozen and torn.

"I'm sorry. I just… I can't…"

Unable to finish, she raced to the door, grabbing her grams' car keys on the way. She wanted to support her friend, but she couldn't with that nightmare fresh in her head.


	4. A Time of Indecision

Bonnie thought it was fitting that she had driven straight to the graveyard. After all, one of her best friends was dead and she had helped to kill her. It was too late for regrets, but that didn't stop the guilt or the doubts that filled her as she stared at the rows of headstones through her windshield. Not only doubts about her current decisions, but doubts about whatever version of her existed in the future Caroline had been sent back from.

She didn't even try to stop the half-hysterical burst of laughter at that last thought. She was in some fucked up version of a Terminator movie, playing the part of Sarah Connor, with Caroline playing her Kyle Reese. For a moment she had to wonder how they would end up with John. Reality quickly and ruthlessly set back in, however, and she had to put some serious thought into what had sent her running from her friend.

That damn dream.

Could she really work with Caroline if, as a vampire, her friend could do that to another person? How could she justify that? Of course, hot on the heels of that question, she had to ask herself if she could trust that Caroline wouldn't go after her or Grams.

Taking a deep breath, Bonnie got out of the car and walked into the cemetery. She had no real destination in mind and no specific graves she wanted to visit. She wasn't coming here to talk to some long dead relative to get their opinion. She had come here to get away from everyone else and think. She had jumped right into this plan, going along with whatever Grams and Caroline had said, and she hadn't really stopped to think about how she felt about it.

Her gut told her to trust in Grams and Caroline, that they were doing what they thought was best. But she couldn't help but doubt. How was turning her best friend into a monster the best course of action? More than that, though, Bonnie had her doubts about the other version of herself. And she knew from all that Grams had taught her recently that all those doubts could be her downfall.

Grams had stressed that a witch who didn't believe in herself, didn't believe in her magic, risked losing it. She didn't feel that power, though –didn't feel whatever it was that inspired such confidence in her from Caroline.

Shaking her head, she started back to the car. This wasn't where she needed to think. She needed to confront her worst fear: being betrayed by the vampire she was supposed to be putting her trust in. She had to talk to Emily. According to what Caroline had told her and Grams –and she didn't miss the irony in using information Caroline had given her to find out if she could trust her—the best place to do that would be where a large number of witches had died. She knew that at least one had died because she had been betrayed by a vampire she trusted.

The only place she felt sure that she could get in touch with Emily would be at the old abandoned house that, according to Caroline, was a witches' burial ground. This was her life now; getting advice from long-dead witches about her vampire friend and her future self.

Bonnie drove as far into the woods as she could before what little road there was became too overgrown. Getting out of the car, she began walking into the trees, opening herself up to try and find exactly where the abandoned home was. It didn't take long before the ruins of the house came into view. As she approached the pillars in the front, she saw a figure standing in the doorway. Just as she recognized the young woman from the picture of Emily Bennett that Grams had shown her, the figure turned and walked through the slowly opening door.

"This is the part in the horror movie where I'm yelling at the screen for the girl to run the other way."

Ignoring her own advice –after all, she had come to talk to dead witches—Bonnie made her way through the door as well. While part of her did notice the rotting wood and the boarded up windows, most of her focus was on the ghost in front of her.

"You've come here with questions, Bonnie. But you already know the answers."

While the smile on Emily's face was benign and something close to affectionate, Bonnie couldn't help but feel uneasy. However, she hadn't come all this way just to turn and run.

"I really don't have the answers, though. I have questions, and I have doubts. How am I supposed to know who to trust, and if what I'm doing is the right thing?"

Emily's expression turned cold, and her voice became almost monotone.

"Do not trust the vampire. She will only release the others, and death will follow."

Bonnie could feel anger and frustration welling up inside her. She knew why Emily would take this view, but there was so much at stake.

"This is about more than the vampires in that tomb, this is about more than Katherine betraying you. This is about the original vampires coming after my friend, and about some ancient immortal rising up and wreaking all kinds of havoc. He's going to lower the veil between worlds and destroy the natural balance. I mean… aren't we supposed to be servants of nature, protect the balance?"

She could feel a tight ball of emotion welling up in her throat and tears burning in her eyes. Emily seemed unmoved, though.

"You do not need the vampire to maintain balance. Vampires cannot be trusted. She will betray you."

The thought of Caroline betraying her triggered an automatic denial within Bonnie. This was her friend. Right after the denial, though, came the memory of her vision. Caroline was a vampire, and vampires could and did kill. She saw Caroline killing a man.

"I just… I need to…"

Confusion spiraled through her. She found herself pacing back and forth, arguments running through her head. Emily had to be wrong. If she didn't need Caroline, then why would Caroline have been back here? Why would she have sent Caroline back? Stopping in her tracks, she turned back to Emily.

"If I didn't need Caroline, if she couldn't be trusted, then why would I send her back?"

Again, Emily remained unmoved.

"It does not matter why she was sent back. She is a vampire, and you cannot trust her."

Anger began to override her confusion. No matter what she said, Emily's answer remained the same. But she needed an answer, not the same phrase repeated at her again and again.

"If I can't trust her, why did I send her back?"

Before Emily could repeat her mantra again, Bonnie nearly growled out, "Don't. I don't want to hear ‘it does not matter'. It matters. If I couldn't trust Caroline, why would I send her back? Why would she be sitting in that motel room with a…"

Suddenly, it hit Bonnie how important it was that Caroline was carrying around a piece of her soul. Her Grams had all but implied that the only way that could happen is if she truly did trust Caroline in whatever future she came from. At some point, she trusted Caroline with both her soul and everyone's lives. Her voice, when it came out again, was very calm.

"I sent her back to save everyone. I trusted her. I trusted her so much that I sent her back with a piece of my soul."

The tears that had been threatening now spilled over.

"When you stand there and tell me that I can't trust Caroline, that's not all you're saying. You're telling me that I can't trust myself. That I shouldn't have faith in myself."

Grams' first lesson rushed to the front of her mind, and she repeated it automatically.

"A witch must have faith in her power, in herself. When a witch doubts herself and her power, she risks losing her power."

Shaking off the near trancelike state that had overcome her, Bonnie continued on, "You're asking me to doubt myself, when that's the last thing I can afford. I can't risk Silas getting free and lowering the veil just so that you can have your revenge. That's not what's right. It's not what will maintain the natural order."

Taking a deep breath, Bonnie could feel the beginnings of peace take root in her mind.

"I don't need to trust Caroline right now. I need to trust myself, to trust in my own judgment."

Looking around the ruins, Caroline addressed the witches she couldn't see but knew were there.

"I need you to trust in me and stand with me. I have so much I need to do, and I can't do it alone. I need all of you to lend me your power and trust that what I do is in the service of nature. I need you to trust that I'm going to do what is right.

There had been no answer, but Bonnie had felt a warm sensation wrap around her. When she looked at Emily again, the young woman's expression was no longer cold, but instead appeared content. Knowing that she had found the answers she had come for, Bonnie left the house and made her way back to her Grams' car.

Before starting up the engine, she picked up her phone and sent a text to Caroline, asking if she was still at the motel and telling her that they needed to talk. She spent the drive back thinking about exactly what she needed to say. While she didn't think it would be what Caroline wanted to hear, the air needed to be cleared.

Grams had already left by the time Bonnie got there, though she was no doubt close by. This was something that she and Caroline needed to do alone. When she opened the door and saw the mixture of fear and hope on Caroline's face, however, she wished that Grams were in the room to make this all better.

Crossing over to sit at the foot of the bed that Caroline was sitting on, Bonnie took a deep breath to gather her courage.

"I ran out this morning, because I had a dream. But… it wasn't just a dream, it was a vision. In it, I saw you killing a man. So, I panicked and left."

Caroline's face showed equal parts dread and resignation, and her voice was soft.

"I can't guarantee that I won't kill anyone this time around. The first time I did, there were deaths that could have been avoided."

At this, her expression changed to determination and she continued with a firmer voice, "But there were people I killed that, if the circumstances were the same, I wouldn't hesitate to kill again. I'm not proud of that, and I do feel guilty, but I did it to save someone I loved."

Bonnie could feel the tears starting to spill down her face. She had been afraid of hearing something like that, but now that she had, it didn't horrify her like she thought it would. Reaching across the space between them, she gently grabbed Caroline's hands in her own.

"I don't know if I can really trust you. I'm going to have my doubts about you, I can't help that. But, right now, I'm making the choice to trust myself. At some point, I trusted you enough to give you a piece of my soul. I have to believe that I wouldn't do that unless I was completely sure of you. I'm not there yet, but I have to believe in myself."

The sight of Caroline's tears left Bonnie feeling raw and helpless. She wanted to so much to take back her words, swear that she trusted her friend completely. But she had to be honest, for both of their sakes. When the emotion became too much, she quickly moved up the bet to sit next to Caroline and wrap her arms around her friend.

"I don't mean to hurt you, it's the last thing I want to do."

She felt Caroline turn and wrap her arms around her. She then heard a sob before Caroline's voice came out soft and unsure.

"We got past this before, and it was much worse. We'll be fine."

Holding onto Caroline tighter, she reached up and ran her hand over her blond curls.

"We'll make it through this together."

Even as she said the words as an automatic platitude, she realized that she truly believed them. At some point, between talking to Emily and arriving here, she had not only decided to believe in herself, but had actually made that leap of faith. They would be okay. It would take some time, but they would get there eventually.

A short time later, Sheila walked into the motel room with a bag of take-out food and found the two girls wrapped up around each other and fast asleep. While their faces still looked wet with tears, they both seemed at peace in their sleep. She was all too aware, though, that this was only the first hurdle.

It wouldn't be the hardest one to surmount either.


	5. Let It Go, Let It Change

Caroline toyed with the corner of the foam board birthday sign on her locker. One of these years she was going to give up waiting for other people to plan her birthday parties for her. She went all out for her friends, and she was happy to. However, _she_ got a decorated locker two days after her birthday. Okay, it would have been kind of hard to give her a decorated locker on her birthday this year since it was on a Saturday. It wasn't really the lack of a big party that upset her though, it was the fact that they knew she loved parties, but they didn't even _think_ that she would want someone to plan a party especially for her.

If she were being honest with herself –and it was something she had been trying to be—her mood wasn't really about her birthday or the level of give and take in her friendships. Getting out her morning books and closing the locker, she had to admit to herself that she was feeling overwhelmed. She knew there were things she was forgetting, something important that she had overlooked. She had pored over her notes endlessly this past week, though that was mostly in a bid to fight off the newbie vampire cravings, and she still hadn't figured out what it was that she was missing.

So far, she had been lucky. While she had realized she couldn't turn in her own home, she hadn't really planned on how to get an invitation in without it seeming suspicious. Thankfully, her mother had come home while she was sitting on their porch trying to figure out how to get in. Seeing the expression on her daughter's face, Liz had assumed something was bothering her. She had told her daughter to come in, have some ice cream, and they could talk about it.

While it had felt good to talk to her mom about how her friendship with Bonnie seemed to be on rocky ground –without any real details, of course—she knew that they couldn't rely on her being lucky all the time. She had to be more proactive in figuring out all the information Bonnie didn't, or couldn't give her before sending her back.

Hearing the unmistakable sound of Elena and Bonnie coming up behind her, she made a quick decision: She needed more help, so it was time for other people to be let in on the secret. Well, let in on _some_ of the secret. She'd keep the time traveling to herself for now. Spinning around with a beauty queen smile firmly in place, she put her plan into action.

"Just the two I wanted to see. Given the severe lack of party in my birthday celebrations so far, you owe me. Tonight, meet me at my house, and I'll let you know where we're going from there."

Caroline could see Elena preparing to weasel her way out of it. However, she was not above guilt tripping her friend. What was the point of having a mean girl attitude in your arsenal if you didn't occasionally use it to get your way?

"I'm sorry, Caroline, I can't come. I'm supposed to be going over to Stefan's. We have some things to talk about."

As much as Caroline was all for Elena and Stefan's epic love, some things were more important than date night.

"I'm sorry, Elena, who is it that has been planning your birthday party every year since forever and has yet to have her friends plan her one?"

While the people pleaser in Caroline wanted to sooth away the guilty look on both her friend's faces, she was on a mission and couldn't afford to be merciful. The Queen of Mean had to take over.

"You both owe me. Tonight, after school, my place. And, since I'm so understanding, you can bring the boy toy along."

Both girls nodded in somewhat reluctant agreement and turned to leave. However, before Bonnie could get far, Caroline grabbed her hand to get her friend's attention. Leaning in close, she spoke low enough so that the other students in the hall couldn't overhear.

"Call your Grams and let her know we're coming over after school. It's time we started letting some people know what's going on."

Before Bonnie could ask what had brought this on, Caroline gave a large grin, waved, and strode off to her first class. During that class –and all the other classes as well—Caroline couldn't keep her mind off who she would be telling about her vampire status, and who she _wouldn't_ be telling. While her mother had come around before, there was no guarantee that would happen this time. Of course, there were key parts of their plans that hinged on her mom being in the know, so there wasn't really a choice.

Waiting at her house later that afternoon with Bonnie, Caroline could admit to being a bit nervous. Of course, given that both of them knew about vampires –Stefan being one was a plus in this situation—and neither of them were vampire haters, this would probably be the easiest confession she would have to make. That didn't mean she didn't still have memories of Elena being too busy to be there for her. Yes she had good reason at the time, but it still stung.

Looking over at Bonnie, she reassured herself that, like with Bonnie, her relationship with Elena would not hit that big of a snag. Caroline chose to ignore the fact that Bonnie was still a bit cold to her. Again, with reason but painful nonetheless. Who it was that Caroline was supposed to be killing in Bonnie's vision was still a mystery, and the witch wasn't really comfortable talking about it yet. Taking a deep breath, Caroline did her best to remember that she was trying to be patient with her friend.

Hearing Elena's SUV pull up in front of her house, she motioned to Bonnie and headed to the door. When they got to the porch, Elena and Stefan were just beginning to get out of the vehicle.

"Get back in the car, losers, we're going to granny's house."

She could see Stefan come to a dead stop and watched as a mild look of panic crossed over his face. Much like when she told him once upon a time that wasn't going to happen now, this one didn't really stray far from his 'hey, it's Tuesday' look either.

"I, uh… I can't really go. I was just going to stop by and say a quick hi. I've got some stuff I have to take care of."

As excuses went, it was lame. Of course, if she didn't know why he really didn't want to go, she would have thought it was nice of him to make his excuses in person. However, he wasn't going to get out of it that easy.

"Sorry, Stefan, you're going to have to take care of whatever it is some other time. Grams is expecting you."

While he did seem confused and suspicious, Stefan got back into the passenger's seat and didn't try to talk his way out of the visit any more during the ride. The only person in the vehicle that didn't seem tense or nervous was Elena. Of course, once she found out what was coming for her, she would be more tense and nervous than all of them put together.

For a moment Caroline entertained the fantasy of going back in time and stopping Klaus' mother from cursing him in the first place. How many lives would be saved? How many would be lost? Of course, if there was no curse, Katherine would never have been a vampire on the run, and would never have turned Stefan and Damon. There would have also been no one turning her. It was all pointless to wonder about anyway. It took a lot of power just to send her back _this_ far, it would probably take more power than they could get hold of to send her back a thousand years.

Caroline was pulled out of her thoughts when the ignition cut off. Putting on a wide smile, she stepped out of the vehicle and made her way to the front porch. After knocking on the door, she turned to hurry the others along. Stefan, of course, was bringing up the rear. When Sheila opened the door and saw Caroline's bright smile, she gave a small smirk in return. As she made her way to one of the chairs Sheila had brought into the front room for the occasion, she heard the witch make a point to invite Stefan in.

When everyone was in the house, Sheila sat in the chair next to Caroline, while Bonnie, Elena, and Stefan all sat on the couch. The latter two looked extremely confused, so Caroline decided to take pity on them and get started.

"As you can probably tell, this isn't exactly a birthday party. It's more like a supernatural roll call slash 'oh, by the way, some vampire heavyweights are going to be making their way to town' kind of a meeting."

Even before she finished, Bonnie was widening her eyes and mouthing her name.

"It's like pulling off a Band-Aid, Bonnie. It's less painful if you do it quick and all at once."

Turning to back to Elena and Stefan, Caroline continued, "Bonnie and Grams are witches, Stefan and I are vampires, and Elena is a doppelgänger."

With each person Caroline spoke of and gestured to, Elena's eyes got wider and her jaw began to drop a little in shock. Stefan's face had gone blank, though. He hadn't lost his voice, nor his ability to connect the dots.

"That's why Sheila wanted my blood: She wanted to turn you. But why turn you, and how long exactly have you been a vampire?"

Grateful that they were starting with the easy questions first, Caroline answered with a smile.

"Sheila needed a vampire she knew she could trust because, as I said before, there are some very dangerous vampires on the way. As for when… I turned around the beginning of the month. Shortly after Sheila got the blood from you and I stole the pocket watch from Jeremy's room." 

At this, Elena shook free of her stupor, moved forward to the edge of her seat on the couch, and began her questioning.

"First off, doppelgänger? Second, what do you mean you stole the pocket watch from Jeremy's room? Why would you do that?"

Before she could try to defend her _minor_ foray into criminal behavior, Sheila stepped in to explain what was going on, minus a few bits here and there. Caroline sat back in her chair and nodded along, as if everything had been Sheila's plan to begin with. When she, Bonnie, and Sheila had discussed how things were going to go, they decided that until Klaus and Elijah made their appearances –or they decided to let everyone know about Caroline's back to the future experience—it would be easier for everyone to accept that Sheila was the one who had gotten all the information and set everything into motion.

It took hours to get them both to believe what was going on and to believe that there was a good plan in place to make sure no one died and stayed dead. After a small moment of panic, though, it was easy to assure Elena that no one was planning on turning her into a vampire. Caroline only had a small twinge of guilt over the fact that, even though they told Stefan and Elena that there was an elixir to bring her back after the ritual, they neglected to tell them that they hadn't actually found the elixir yet. She was able to keep from blurting this out by remembering that, if worse came to worst, Elijah had the elixir they needed. She really didn't want to rely on him, though.

What she wasn't able to keep herself from blurting out, though, was the fact that Elena was adopted. There were days where she thought that her blunt and straightforward approach to most things was an asset. This was not one of those days. Given that she had just thrown that out there without any smoothing over or preparation, she felt that Elena handled it damn well. There were some hugs, a few teary apologies, and then Sheila let them know that there was still more than needed to talk about.

Elena was only too happy to hand over the necklace Stefan had given her in exchange for a new one –also filled with vervain, of course—once she learned that a witch that had been dead for a thousand years might use it to try and come back to kill off all vampires. Even thinking that, along with everything else that was going on, made Caroline feel like she was in a cheesy B-grade horror movie.

It was dark before the discussion began to wind down. As Stefan helped Sheila gather up the cups they had been drinking from, Elena started to question Caroline about how being a vampire was different from being a human. While she answered readily enough, she began to wonder if Elena had ever put these same questions to Stefan. Before she could give in to her urge to ask, Sheila walked back into the room, followed closely by Stefan.

"Saturday, I'll be heading to North Carolina. There's a witch there who knows the location of something we can use as a bargaining chip with Klaus."

She turned to Bonnie, her expression softening slightly, and asked, "Are you wanting to come with me?"

Bonnie's expression, unlike her grandmother's, was almost stony. She shook her head in reply. Caroline reached out to hold her hand, knowing that it was too soon for her to confront her mother, even knowing now _why_ her mother had left. Caroline thought that it possibly hurt worse, knowing that her mother had left because she was without magic, as if her daughter wasn't enough of a reason to face living with the memory of that magic. She could only hope that Bonnie and her mother had a chance to bond this time around without any dire circumstances or vampirism involved.

Shortly after, Elena drove Bonnie and then Caroline home. Caroline had a feeling that Elena would either be inviting Stefan home with her, or staying at the boarding house that night so they could talk more about what was going on. She, however, had no plans to think about it anymore that night. She didn't think about it anymore for most of the week either, despite Elena's obvious attempts to steer conversations in that direction.

Friday morning, however, she did think about it. Watching from beside a parked bus, she waited for Tyler to pull away from his fellow jocks and make his way back to the school. As he passed by her, she quickly grabbed him and pulled him out of the view of other students, moving too fast for any of them to see what had happened.

"I'm sorry, Tyler, but this is something I have to do."

While he looked confused and a bit annoyed, he didn't look at all afraid. Caroline sent up a quick thank you to whatever it was in him that made him either dismiss the fact that he had just been moved faster than humanly possible or miss it happening all together. Before he could question what she was doing, Caroline made eye contact and compelled him to skip class with her and head back home. Following Tyler in her car on the way to Lockwood Mansion gave Caroline time to contemplate the fact that she didn't really feel all that guilty for compelling Tyler so that he could show her where the moonstone was located.

This was her life now. Caroline reasoned that she had to let go of certain levels of guilt in order to survive and function in a manner that would help her friends. It was this urge to help those she cared about that made her decide that she was going to do everything she could to ensure that Tyler's werewolf gene was never triggered, and that he never got involved in all of this supernatural business. 

She realized that this meant that she and Tyler would never be together and he would never fall in love with her, however, he would have the possibility of a happy and _normal_ life, free of painful changes and sire bonds. As her eyes began to tear up, Caroline realized that she had never contemplated what she would lose with this plan. She and Tyler were supposed to finally have a chance to be together but, in order for that to happen, she would have to open him up to a world of pain and suffering. She couldn't do that to him, she had to let him go. It was for the best.

By the time they arrived at Tyler's home and Caroline opened her car door, no one would have been able to tell that she had been on the verge of crying. When necessary, she was very good at pushing down everything else in order to get done whatever needed to be done.

Listening carefully for any sound from inside the house as Tyler unlocked his door, Caroline found that, thankfully, both of his parents were away from home. While Tyler had told her about finding the moonstone, she had never thought to ask _where_ the hiding spot had been. It hadn't really crossed her mind that she would find herself sent back in time and needing to get her hands on the moonstone before anyone else did. After the front door had closed, Caroline turned to Tyler and caught his eyes once more.

"Tyler, is there a secret hidey-hole or safe your family would keep very important family heirlooms in?"

Tyler stopped and thought for a moment before he nodded his head and said in a nearly monotone voice, "There's a safe hidden in the floorboards."

Ignoring the creepy feeling she got at his tone –this was all for the best, after all—she smiled and took his hand.

"Take me to the safe and let's see if we can open it."

Luckily, it turned out that Tyler knew the combination. The first box that Caroline opened –its scrimshawed starburst gleaming dully against the aged ivory—didn't contain the moonstone. Instead, she recognized what she found inside as part of the compass Damon had her use to find a vampire the first time around. God, she was an idiot. She should have realized that the pocket watch she had taken from Jeremy's room didn't look the same; it was missing a piece. Slipping the device piece into her purse and replacing the box, Caroline continued rifling through the floor safe until she came upon the last possible hiding place for the moonstone.

Lifting the square wooden box with its engraved heraldry on the lid, Caroline sat back and sent up a small prayer to whoever would listen that this would be it. When she opened the box she found the moonstone resting in a nest of fur –how appropriate and yet tacky. Slipping the rock into her purse, she then placed everything back in the safe and closed it up.

Standing up and walking over to Tyler, she looked in his eyes and gave him one last order.

"You won't remember I came here. If someone asks and implies that they know I was here, you'll suddenly remember that I cornered you and nagged you until you were forced to bring me here so I could check something out that was supposed to help me with the planning of some town function or something. If they press you, you'll tell them you don't remember exactly what it was because you honestly didn't care, you only brought me to shut me up."

As Caroline drove back to school, she was feeling very good about her plans. So far, she had everything she needed. Now she just needed to take the moonstone, find Emily's grimoire, open the tomb, make sure only Pearl got out, and then wait for John Gilbert, Isobel, and Katherine to show up. Thank god she wasn't doing this alone, because when she actually thought about all that had to be accomplished, it seemed like an impossible task. 

Caroline was both so cocky from her success thus far and so engrossed in what she still had to do that she missed the fact that she and Tyler had been followed. In a car idling a short distance from the mansion, Vicki Donovan sat gripping the steering wheel tight and fighting back tears.

She had followed Tyler at the school, hoping to get him alone to try and convince him that they should get back together. For a second she had lost sight him, but then she saw him talking with Caroline Forbes. When they made their way to the parking lot, she decided to follow, trying to convince herself that it wasn't what it looked like. Watching them enter Tyler's home and watching Caroline leave with a large grin on her face, though, she couldn't lie to herself. Caroline was just the kind of girl his family would embrace. He wouldn't hide her or refuse to take her to town functions.

Driving down the street, Vicki headed away from the school. She couldn't face going back there knowing that Tyler had moved on to a girl who could give him everything she couldn't. Needing to get rid of the mental image of them together, she decided to head into the woods where she knew there would be a few people willing to share something to help her stop thinking. Maybe later she would text Jeremy and he could remind her that she wasn't always being rejected.


	6. Nothing Changes In This World

So far, Caroline had spent approximately five hours sitting in Sheila's car. Yesterday afternoon, just as Caroline had pulled into the school parking lot after her trip to Tyler's, Sheila had called her. Apparently she thought it was a good idea for Caroline to come along when she visited her daughter, in case Mikael's desiccated body was holed up somewhere close enough to visit. While it had only taken two hours to get to Abby Bennett's home in Monroe, North Carolina, Sheila thought it would probably be best if Caroline waited in the car as Abby probably wouldn't be receptive to vampires.

So she waited. For another two hours she waited. Apparently Sheila had also taken the time to attempt to convince Abby to come back to Mystic Falls and take a chance on getting her magic back. When Sheila came out of the house, it was with the location of Mikael's body and Abby's promise to think about a return.

Another two hours later and they were standing outside the Pickett mausoleum in Charlotte. Honestly, if she were in Abby's place, she would have been located as far away as possible from where she hid this guy. Maybe she thought she could do some good if she found out he escaped or someone tried to free him. It didn't matter now. Mikael had officially gone from being Abby's responsibility to being their bargaining chip.        

Sheila readjusted the strap of her bag and gestured to the mausoleum doors. Caroline easily opened them, breaking the lock in the process. With a grin, she turned to the other woman and playfully said, "Oops."

The sound of Sheila's soft laugh followed her inside, where she was confronted by a stone sarcophagus with a simple cross on the lid. She was officially living the gothic vampire cliché now. Taking a deep breath, she braced her hands on the lid, but then paused and turned back to Sheila.

"I swear, if he moves in any way, I'm going to scream like a small child and you're not allowed to hold it against me or tell _anyone_ that it happened. Clear?"

With a nod and a small smile, Sheila replied, "Crystal."

Turning back, Caroline pushed the lid off with one forceful shove. She could feel Sheila come up beside her to look. Inside was a middle-aged-looking man wrapped in chains and bearing the grey skin and prominent veins of a dead or desiccated vampire. Unless Abby was storing any other incapacitated vampires, this was their guy. Just as Caroline relaxed, Mikael's eyes popped open and, as promise, she did scream like a very small and very frightened child.

Sheila had no comment as she was picking herself up from the floor. Apparently it had been just as shocking for her.

"Besides the eyes, he shouldn't be able to move, right?"

Caroline wasn't sure if Sheila knew what she was talking about or if she was just that good at lying, but it was easy to believe her when she confirmed that the eyes were the only thing that could move on the vampire in question. Calming her nerves, Caroline braced herself on the edge of the stone tomb and climbed up. As she balanced on the narrow edge, she could feel Sheila reach up to brace her. When she looked down, the older woman's expression showed her concern.

"You do remember that I'm a vampire, right?"

Sheila didn't look amused, so Caroline turned her gaze back to Mikael. Taking her smartphone out of her back pocket, she quickly snapped a picture. When she jumped down from her perch, she could hear Sheila's gasp and made a silent promise to be more careful so as not to unnecessarily worry her friend's grandmother. Ignoring the weight of Mikael's silent stare, Caroline groped around him until she found what she was looking for.

"Caroline Forbes, what are you doing?"

Ignoring the scandalized tone, Caroline turned with a large grin brandishing Mikael's white oak stake. Tilting her head in mock curiosity, she gave a little hum.

"What does it say about a father when he spends this much time and effort decorating and embellishing the only thing that can kill his children?"

Without waiting for a reply, Caroline tossed the stake carelessly toward Sheila's bag and then walked over to where the lid to Mikael's temporary coffin had landed. Lifting it awkwardly, she managed to maneuver it back in to place.

When she was done, she saw Sheila setting up candles along the walls of the mausoleum. On the way to Abby's, she had told Caroline that she planned to place a magic barrier around where Mikael was hidden to prevent anyone else from getting to him as well as to prevent him from escaping. Though, after about fourteen years, she doubted he would be making a sudden bid for freedom. She couldn't help but agree that it was better safe than sorry.

When they settled back into the car, a thought suddenly dawned on Caroline. As she turned to voice it, though, Sheila interrupted her.

"Yes, Caroline, I realize that this means I'll have to come with Klaus so that he can get to Mikael."

Caroline leveled her with a mock suspicious look and a touch of a pout.

"That apparent mind reading thing you do is freaky."

She took a deep breath and blew it noisily out. As she turned to stare out the windshield, she informed Sheila, "I'm going to come with you, because there is _no way_ I'm letting you go alone."

Caroline reassured herself that this had nothing to do with wanting to see if this Klaus was the same as her… Not hers, never hers. This had nothing to do with wanting to see how this Klaus was different from the one she knew. She was going purely to look out for Sheila.

Three hours later, Caroline hadn't fully convinced herself that she had no real curiosity when it came to Klaus. Luckily, when Sheila pulled up in front her of house there was a promised distraction from her thoughts in the form of Elena sitting on her porch steps. Unluckily, Elena looked to be very upset.

In response to Sheila's questioning look, Caroline said ruefully, "Yeah, I know what this is about."

And she did know what it was about. While Sheila had told Elena that she was a doppelgänger and what that meant, no one had told her what Katherine had meant to the Salvatore brothers. Apparently –either last night or today—Stefan had gotten around to telling her what exactly went on between them. Knowing Stefan, there were probably things he left out that would have really put Elena's mind at ease. So it was Caroline Forbes to the rescue.

It only took an hour or so to convince Elena that Stefan loved her for her, and it had nothing to do with Katherine, then they decided to have a sleepover. When they called Bonnie to try and get her to come, the young witch had to pass because she was reading through her Grams' witchy library. Caroline was disappointed, but couldn't really argue with the fact that they needed all the knowledge they could get.

Caroline wasn't pretending as she swooned –once again—over hearing how Stefan jumped in the river and ended up saving her from the sinking car. She got teary-eyed right along with Elena when she heard about how her father made Stefan save her first. And, yes, she still found it romantic that Stefan couldn't resist the urge to get to know Elena once he figured out she wasn't Katherine. She had to say, it was one of their better sleepovers.

The next week went smoothly, which was very fortunate. Caroline wasn't sure that she could have handled anything popping up given how chaotic her thoughts were. She was trying to decide when they needed to tell her mom about her being a vampire and all the trouble coming to town. All week she would waver between wanting to put it off as long as possible and wanting to just get it all over with. Then, of course, she had to decide _how_ to tell her. Should it be over a nice dinner? Maybe she should have everyone there to help her. Or just Sheila.

The last sounded like a very good plan.

Friday she called Sheila to ask if she would help. On Saturday, just after Caroline and her mother finished up breakfast, there was a knock at the front door. Suddenly she wanted nothing more than to run out the back door and keep running. Since that wasn't an option, she followed her mother and watched as she let Sheila in.

They moved to the living room once Sheila said that she had something they needed to talk about. She began by telling the Sheriff what was coming to town, that the Salvatore brothers—well, Salvatore _brother_ given that Damon was currently desiccating—were vampires, and that her daughter had been turned and why. There were a lot of tears and denial, and Caroline had to convince her mother that she had started trying to bond with her before she had even talked to Sheila about turning. It was a small lie, but Caroline was determined to tell her mother. Which was why, much to Sheila's surprise, Caroline told her mother about being sent back by Bonnie.

Not surprisingly, that one took a while to convince her of. An hour into it, Sheila became so frustrated with the conversation that she roughly placed her hands on each of their heads and showed Liz what was in her daughter's mind. Apparently, whatever her mother saw was enough to convince her that they were telling the truth, and that she shouldn't kill Caroline or turn her in to the Council. They also told her that they hadn't told Stefan or Elena about the time travel for obvious reasons.

"If you didn't tell them, then why are you telling me? Why are you telling me any of this?"

Caroline could hear the accusation in her mother's voice, as if she was angry that they had put the burden of this knowledge on her. 

"I don't want to lie to you. I don't want to be afraid of you, or have you afraid of me. I almost lost you because of Silas and now I have a chance to stop that from happening. I don't want to waste this time around lying to you and being afraid that you'll hate me. I love you."

By the time Caroline had finished, her mother had tears in her eyes, yet she was shaking her head.

"I won't tell the council, or kick you out. But… I just need time to think about this. It's just…"

Caroline nodded her head with her lips pressed tight and tears hanging on her lashes. She understood what her mother was going through, just like she understood what Bonnie was going through. It didn't stop it from hurting, though. When Liz got to her feet and quickly walked from the room, Caroline could no longer hold back. As sobs wracked her body, she felt Sheila's arms go around her and the warmth that accompanied the gesture. But as much as the sensation still reminded her of home, it was no substitute for her mother.

After Sheila left, Caroline wrote out a note to her mother explaining that she would be staying the night at Elena's and then headed out the door. Thankfully Elena was home and, once Caroline explained that she had told her mom about being a vampire, was more than willing to let her stay over. After a quick run to the store for some emergency ice cream, they curled up on the couch with some sad movies so that Caroline could pretend it wasn't her mother she was crying about.

Halfway through their second movie, Vicki and Jeremy came in the door. After giving Caroline a very nasty look, Vicki nearly stomped up the stairs toward Jeremy's room. With an apologetic shrug, Jeremy followed her.

"What was that…?"

Caroline interrupted Elena before she finished so that she could hear the argument upstairs. Yes, snooping was immature, but she felt she had a right to know why Vicki was throwing her dirty looks. Last time she checked, she hadn't done anything to the girl. It didn't take long, though, to figure it out.

With a resigned sigh, she focused back on Elena and, in a whisper, told her what was going on.

"Last Friday I compelled Tyler to take me to his place and help me find the moonstone. Apparently Vicki followed us and now thinks I stole her on-again off-again boyfriend. She's bad mouthing me to Jeremy, and he's getting upset that she's still jealous over Tyler."

Looking at Elena, Caroline decided to broach what she knew would be a sensitive topic.

"You know we're going to have to tell Jenna and Jeremy about what's going on, and soon."

Elena's eyes grew wide with shock and she stammered, "What? No, we're not going to tell them! I want them to lead a nice, _normal_ life."

Caroline could understand where Elena was coming from, but they couldn't afford that kind of thinking right now. Reaching out, she covered one of Elena's hands with her own.

"Ignorance may be bliss, Elena, but it's about to become fatal in this town. And no amount of sending them away will work, because it would be far too easy to hunt them down if someone decided you needed some incentive to do what they wanted you to."

Before Elena could answer, Vicki came stomping back down the stairs and out the door. When Jeremy came back down more slowly, though just as angrily, Caroline hold a pint of ice-cream toward him.

"Rocky Road and sappy movies. It'll cure what ails ya."

After a minute, Jeremy turned his gaze toward Caroline, the expression on his face confused and a bit lost.

"Are you and Tyler together now?"

Wow; she did not expect the pang that went through her at the question. She really had to get used to the fact that she and Tyler were not now–nor would they ever be—together. Keeping her expression neutral and the offer of ice cream extended, she replied, "Nope. I don't date d-bags."

The part of her that still identified herself as Tyler's girlfriend tried to rise up in protest. However, she had to remind herself that, as much as she loved him, before he turned and they became friends, Tyler had been a major asshole. And this time around, he was more than likely _still_ a major asshole.

Taking the ice cream, Jeremy nudged Caroline over and sat down to watch movies with them. While he didn't cry, she thought he still fit right in. 

When Caroline went to school Monday, she didn't see Vicki anywhere even though she looked for her. In fact, she didn't see her at all the rest of the week and Jeremy was looking more and more worried every day. Wednesday, Caroline had a very uncomfortable talk with her mother in which the Sheriff tried to ask in as roundabout and inoffensive a way as possible if she or Stefan may have killed Vicki.

While she was hurt her mother would even have to ask if she had killed someone –and remember those she had killed before made her feel guilty but didn't lessen the pain—she was grateful that she was being asked and not accused. She assured her mother that she hadn't killed Vicki and that Stefan was sticking strictly to his woodland creature diet. 

It did leave a doubt in her mind, though. How sure could she be that other vampires hadn't arrived yet? She was going to have to have her mom use the compass to find any. However, she wasn't letting her mother just roam out there alone, and she really couldn't let the Council get hold of the device just yet. She was going to have to call Sheila and make sure she was with her mother. If there was going to be vampire hunting, no one was going to be doing it alone.

That night she talked to Sheila about her plan. If there were other vampires in Mystic Falls, they had to know about them. Sheila agreed and, the next afternoon, she came by after she taught her last class of the day. Her mother came home for a minute after Caroline had called her and told her it was important. While Caroline noticed the strain in her mother's voice, she chalked it up to the fact that she hadn't completely come to terms with her daughter being a vampire.

It would have been hard to miss the sorrow in the Sheriff's face when she walked into the living room. Before Caroline could ask what was wrong, Liz took a deep breath and asked Caroline and Sheila to sit down.

"They found Vicki Donovan's body out in the woods this morning."

Shock ran through Caroline and she picked her phone up off the coffee table.

"I'll call Stefan to see if Damon's gotten out. I knew we should have put up some sort of magic barrier just in case. I'm so stupid!"

Caroline's mother calmly took the phone out of her hand before she could find Stefan's phone number in her contact list.

"It wasn't a vampire. There were no signs of bite wounds or blood loss. We're waiting on the tox screens, but we're pretty sure that it was an overdose."

Caroline stared up at her in shock. It just didn't make sense.

"But… I saved her. Damon couldn't hurt her anymore because he was locked up. He couldn't turn her, so she wasn't going to attack anyone, and Stefan wasn't going to have to stake her. I stopped it from happening. She was supposed to be safe."

Caroline could barely feel her body and her brain didn't seem to be working exactly right. If Damon hadn't gotten out, then Vicki was supposed to live. That was the plan. She had done everything right!

It wasn't until she felt her mother pull her into her arms and start stroking her hair that she realized that her face was soaked. It was like that knowledge opened a floodgate, and she was suddenly sobbing uncontrollably. She could hear her mother whispering to her and feel Sheila wrap her arms around the both of them, but she just couldn't let go of the thought that this shouldn't be happening. She followed the plan they had come up with, but it hadn't worked. 

She was already failing and she hadn't even started yet.


	7. We'll Never Have to Lose it Again

She was used to being left behind, left out of the loop, and even forgotten about. What Caroline _wasn't_ used to was being forced to stay behind while someone else ran point on _her_ plan. And, yes, part of her plan was that she stay behind waiting for Sheila and her mother to call –after all, the damn compass wouldn't find any other vampires if she were right there— but it didn't change the fact that waiting sucked. Waiting meant that she had plenty of time to sit and think, and thinking lead her to worrying about what all she might not be able to change.

Her mother and Sheila had both assured her that Vicki's death wasn't her fault, but she couldn't help but feel guilty. She should have followed up on Vicki. Maybe she could have compelled her clean or something. Yes, she was well aware that her addiction was about more than the drugs, but at least she would have been alive to deal with her issues. Caroline decided that she would simply have to look over her plans again, paying closer attention to the circumstances surrounding everything.

She had just gotten out the notebook that she and Sheila had used to brainstorm and work out their plans in when her cell phone vibrated on the coffee table. Before it could start to actually ring she had grabbed it up and, seeing that it was her mother calling, answered. A few minutes later and she was standing across the street from a generic-looking motel –how had she not even realized that this motel existed?—with her mother and Sheila, staring down at their vampire compass.

"You know what would be really helpful? If this thing also told you _how many_ vampires are near."

Sheila gave a small smile and then started to cross the street, followed by Caroline's mother who actually chuckled and gave a rueful nod before she started off. Caroline chose to take this as a sign of progress in their relationship. With her mood greatly improved, Caroline stayed across the street from the motel, while Sheila and Liz began to go from door to door, watching to see when the compass would show them which door hid at least one vampire.

When the needle firmly pointed at one room in particular, Sheila closed the compass and slid it into her jacket pocket as Caroline sped to their side. With Liz and Caroline slightly behind and flanking her, Sheila firmly knocked on the door. Though Caroline could hear movement inside, no one answered. Listening closer, she was almost completely certain that there were two people inside and, when Sheila turned back to look at her, held up two fingers to indicate as such.

"I know you're in there, it's no use trying to hide," Sheila said in a normal conversational tone, letting those inside know that she was aware that they were vampires.

When no answer came, she turned to Caroline and nodded her head. They had decided that, when they confronted any vampires they met –save for when they actually talked to Pearl—Sheila would play the part of Head Witch in Charge, while Liz played her inside woman on the town council. This left Caroline with the role of their vampire puppet and all around muscle. She may have helped come up with their roles, but part of her still bristled at the idea of not taking control. It didn't stop her from stepping forward and applying enough pressure to the door handle to break the lock.

Caroline gave the door a gentle push so that it would swing open and then stepped back to her place. Sheila stood in the now open doorway staring down the vampires who were regarding her with caution and surprise from just outside the reach of the sun. She recognized one of the vampires as a former student of Mystic Falls High School. She could understand why he was avoiding the light –she couldn't see anything like a daylight ring on him—but she had to wonder if Anna was avoiding the light out of habit or to make them think she didn't have a way to move around during the day.

Stepping through the door, Sheila gestured for Caroline and Liz to follow. As the door once again closed behind them, she lowered herself into the room's only chair as if she were some mob boss come to make them an offer they couldn't refuse. Caroline had to hand it to her: Sheila really knew how to carry herself to get the reaction she wanted.

"Let me introduce myself. My name is Sheila Bennett, and you're in my town. Who are you, what is your business here, and how soon will you be gone?"

Sheila addressed this all to the female vampire and Caroline had to wonder if she also recognized the guy with her. Ben McKittrick couldn't have been turned very recently and, if she remembered some of the late night conversations from the first time around, Bonnie ended up developing a small crush on him. Well, right up until he helped Anna kidnap her and Elena. He was getting nowhere _near_ Bonnie if she had anything to say about it.

"My name is Anna. I'm just passing through and I'll be gone in a couple of days."

The name clicked into place for Caroline immediately. Trusting that Sheila would play along and keep a good poker face, she spoke up.

"You really shouldn't lie to her. She doesn't like that. We know why you're here, and we can help you. You want your mother out of the tomb, and we need some information she has."

As smoothly as if she had already known what was going on long before she stepped foot in the room, Sheila took over.

"If you're willing to play by our rules, I don't see why we can't help each other out."

Sheila hadn't been slacking when it came to memorizing all the people they needed to find and the details that Caroline had provided about them. She proved this as she continued on.

"Since you're suddenly here in Mystic Falls, I can only assume that you not only realize that we need Emily Bennett's grimoire to open the tomb, but that you also have a good idea of how to find it. Help us with that and, after we get the information we need from your mother, you two can go peaceably and live your lives together."

At this, Anna turned to Liz with a suspicious look on her face.

"And does this go for the council as well?"

Caroline was really proud that her mother managed to not show any surprise that Anna knew about both the council and that she was on it. Or maybe she had just come in assuming that the vampire had done her research.

"The council has no part in this. As long as you keep your head down and keep Mr. McKittrick here under control, I can make sure that both you and your mother stay off their radar."

This seem to satisfy Anna, and she turned back to Sheila saying, "You have to look in Jonathan Gilbert's journal. That will tell you where to find Emily's grimoire."

After reaffirming that the two vampires would keep a low profile, Shelia, Caroline, and Liz all headed to Elena's house to see if she could help them find her ancestor's journal. Going through the dusty old books, ledgers, and journals had Caroline changing her mind about the lack of security involved in the founding families putting all their secrets in journals. Given the sheer amount of books that they were currently going through, the odds of anyone reading those secrets _intentionally_ let alone accidentally seemed astronomical.

Just when she was ready to suggest trying to find a spell to help them locate the information, she finally found a journal belonging to Johnathan Gilbert that matched up with the dates they were looking for. Reading through, she discovered that he had given Emily's grimoire to Giuseppe Salvatore. Great, Stefan's father. So much for trying to keep him from getting too involved in anything.

Caroline volunteered to be the one to talk to Stefan about where his father would have hidden the grimoire. Of course, Elena wasn't going to let an opportunity to see her boyfriend pass, so she offered to drive Caroline. It was when she started to plan how to broach the subject of his father with Stefan that she was hit with a nagging sensation that she was missing something. She couldn't shake the feeling during the entire drive and it wasn't until they walked through the door of the boarding house that she figured it out. 

She had forgotten all about Stefan's birthday. Granted, this time around they weren't as close –yet—as they had been before her blast to the past, but she really felt about two inches tall. There was also the small flare of jealousy that she felt standing with Elena in Stefan's entryway and coming face to face with Lexi who, just like before, was here to celebrate with her friend. While she liked the thought of Stefan having other friends besides just her in _theory_ , she had gotten used to being his only friend.

Caroline was busy trying to convince herself that mentally referring to the woman in front of her as the _other_ best friend didn't make her creepily possessive of Stefan when she heard Elena speak up.

"I'm Elena. Who are you?"

Glancing over at her friend she could see confusion mixed with a hint of jealousy in her expression. It probably didn't help that Lexi looked completely thrown by Elena showing up.

"Lexi. A friend of Stefan's."

Knowing that this could go completely sideways fast, especially with how Elena and Stefan's relationship was just coming off the blow of Elena finding out that she looked _exactly_ like his ex-girlfriend, Caroline decided she needed to intervene really quickly.

"Two questions. First, when you say friend, you do just mean friend and not _friend_ , right?" At Lexi's nod, she continued, "Second, you've probably met Katherine. Am I right?"

Caroline could see Lexi visibly relax and could only guess that it was because she had figured out that this really _wasn't_ Katherine trying to pull a fast one.

"I've never actually met her, no. However, I've heard enough about her to not be a big fan."

Walking past Lexi and over the couches, Caroline sat down and smiled over at her and Elena.

"Well then, we might just have a lot in common. We should totally get to know each other so that Elena can get rid of that bit of 'is this the other woman' fear that's probably started to creep into the back of her mind."

Yes, Elena looked completely mortified that Caroline had just come right out and said that, but she really shouldn't be surprised. They had known each other practically forever and Caroline had always been one to blurt out inappropriate things at the worst of times. However, in this particular instance, it was entirely on purpose. The quicker everyone got over being uncomfortable, the easier it would be to turn Lexi into an information source.

As much as she adored Stefan, Caroline was well aware that he wasn't actually in touch with what was going on in the supernatural world. The things that they had to get done they would require information and contacts; if Lexi could help out, it would make things so much easier.

The conversation had been going pretty smoothly and Lexi had just told them that she was in town to help Stefan celebrate his birthday when the man in question made his appearance. While Caroline would normally have loved to tease Stefan about being an old man –well, would have in that other time that she really needed to put a name to so it was easier to think of in her mind—they had come for a reason. Standing up, she pulled out Johnathan's journal, opened it to the passage she'd bookmarked that talked about Emily's book, and handed it to Stefan.

"We sort of found out what Johnathan did with the grimoire. Well, actually, we're pretty sure that he gave it to Giuseppe Salvatore. We were kind of hoping that you could maybe hunt down your father's journals or something to see if he happened to say what he did with it."

She watched as Stefan read the passage with a look of concentration on his face. She could see the moment when something occurred to him and his brow furrowed as he began to read out loud.

"But it was Giuseppe Salvatore who removed my fear. He told me he would protect the secret of the spell book. He said he would carry it to his grave."

Closing the book slowly, Stefan looked up at Caroline and slowly said, "I don't think we're going to need to find my father's journal. I know where it is. We can go get it now"

At this, Lexi –who Caroline had nearly forgotten was there—spoke up.

"How long is this going to take? Because it's _still_ your birthday and you still owe me a day of fun."

Stefan looked about ready to protest and Elena looked a little put out by someone else commandeering Stefan's time and attention. Quickly, before things could spin out of control, Caroline spoke up.

"You know, she's right. It's not like all those old vampires are going to descend upon us tomorrow. We have time to enjoy life."

"What old vampires, and why would they be coming here?" Lexi interrupted, her voice clearly broadcasting her confusion.

Turning to look at her, Caroline tried to decide how best to handle the situation. She could take the time to explain here, but there were things she wanted to say to Lexi that Stefan shouldn't be told. Widening her eyes and grinning, she clapped her hands and turned to Elena and Stefan.

"You two go and find the grimoire. I will fill Lexi in on everything that's happening _while_ we plan the last minute birthday party!"

She felt a hand slip around her arm and looked over to see Lexi holding on to her while grinning at Stefan.

"I like this girl. She may be my new best friend –just warning you."

As they both walked out the door, Caroline heard Stefan groan to Elena, "Those two together might just be the death of me."

She couldn't help but smile, though. If things went right, Stefan wouldn't have to lose his best friend. Lexi would always be there for him if he ever slipped up again. She would just have to make sure that another mistake didn't happen like it had with Vicki.

The talk with Lexi went very smoothly. Spending time with the older vampire, Caroline could see why Stefan liked her so much. Well, aside from the fact that she apparently kept bringing him back from his ripper binges. In some ways she could see why Stefan had once told her that she reminded him of Lexi. It was also nice to have someone else around who understood the importance of letting go and having fun at least once in a while.

Beyond being someone who could clue her on what was going on in the supernatural world outside of Mystic Falls, it also turned out that Lexi was friends with Rose. When Caroline had told her that Rose was going to come and try and use Elena in exchange for her freedom –using the 'a dead gossipy and psychically talented witch told us this' excuse that Sheila had come up with to explain how she knew—Lexi was only too happy to help convince her not to. Of course, she made sure that Caroline was going to do her best to ensure Rose's survival and freedom in exchange.

In the end, it turned out to be a very productive outing. Of course, later that night –after Stefan's last minute birthday bash at The Grill—she had to spill all the details to Elena. She could practically hear the relief in her voice when Lexi's boyfriend Lee was brought up. Maybe she could manage to get Elena and Lexi to be friends. That would be more people working together to help Stefan keep his cool.

She was still working out the best way to bond the two the next afternoon as she walked into history class, and she was already in her seat and taking out her textbook before she realized that Alaric was at the front of the class. As she listened to him bumble through an overly long explanation of his name in a nervous ramble, she tried hard not to picture the last time she was in a classroom with him. She kept telling herself that this wasn't the same Alaric and that she could keep him from becoming that Alaric. In the back of her mind, the memory of Vicki's death mocked her.

That night Caroline visited Sheila to talk about how they would tell Jenna, Jeremy, and Alaric about the curse and everything they were doing about it. They decided it would be best if Sheila dropped in on Alaric at his home and invited him to Elena's place. While Caroline felt she could easily compel him to come along –provided he didn't have access to vervain —she had to agree with Shelia that doing so could cause some trust issues and that was something they couldn't really afford. Besides, Sheila could be very persuasive on her own.

Caroline also brought up having a talk with Jeremy. She had come to the conclusion that it would be best to prepare him in case they weren't able to reason with Connor. She didn't tell Sheila that she was pretty sure that the man Bonnie saw Caroline killing in her vision was Connor. As it was, she was already trying to figure a way to deal with the hunter's curse if she did have to kill him.

She also didn't tell Sheila that she was _possibly_ looking for any and all opportunities to throw Bonnie and Jeremy together. It wasn't enough that her friends and loved ones survived; they had to have a shot at real happiness as well. Otherwise, what was the point of it all?

The next day, relatively early for a Saturday morning, Caroline and her mother showed up at Elena's with coffee and a variety of donuts. She was hoping to soften Elena up before informing her that, regardless of what she felt on the matter, they were going to have to tell Jenna and Jeremy what was going on. Given the suspicious look she was giving both of them, though, it didn't look like that was going to work. She didn't seem to have warmed up to the idea of telling her family anything if her response was anything to go by.

"No. They don't need to be a part of this. It has nothing to do with them."

A part of Caroline wanted to take it slow, to work Elena up to the idea. However, they didn't have the luxury of doing it that way. Brutal and direct it was then.

"God, Elena, could you just stop being so selfish? You want so much to cling to something normal that you're willing to put Jenna and Jeremy at risk. Tell me why it is, again, that people think you're so compassionate and selfless?"

It was a cruel thing to say and so much of it was a lie. Caroline wanted to take back the words, to reassure Elena that she wasn't really selfish, but she had to do something to shock the other girl into realizing what was at stake. The look that her mother gave her said she knew exactly what Caroline was doing and wasn't going to stop her.

"Sometimes, Elena, we have to put the lives of those we love over our own comfort and happiness. Jenna and Jeremy being oblivious to what's going on around them only makes it that much easier for others to use and control them. If you want to keep them safe, you have to tell them."

Just then, Jenna walked through the kitchen door, the expression on her face making it very clear that she had caught some of what was said. Caroline, of course, had heard her coming down the stairs. She could have lowered her voice, or even let Elena know that her aunt was coming, but she had chosen not to. It was a low way to win the argument, but sometimes the ends justified the means.

"What exactly do you have to tell us?"

Elena didn't put up much resistance to Jenna and Jeremy being let in on what was happening after that. Apparently, her aunt was actually getting pretty good at the guilt-tripping that most good mothers seemed to know instinctively how to do. When Sheila and Bonnie arrived with a confused-looking Alaric in tow, Elena didn't even seem upset by what was going on anymore.

After all the explanations were handed out and Alaric's presence had been explained Bonnie had slipped away almost completely unnoticed with Jeremy to talk to him about what they might need of him _after_ the curse was broken. Caroline spared a moment to wonder about what all went on in _that_ conversation. Elena walked up behind her and handed Caroline one of the two mugs of tea she was holding and said they should head out to the porch for a talk.

It took a couple of minutes of sitting side by side on the porch steps and more than a few sips of their tea before Elena began talking.

"You were right, you know. I was being completely selfish. I was putting them both at risk just so I could pretend to be normal."

Finally, Caroline was able to take back those words. This was one burden that Elena shouldn't have to carry. Wrapping one arm around her friend's shoulders and pulling her in close, she did her best to lift off the weight.

"No, Elena, I wasn't right. You weren't being completely selfish, you were being a normal teenager. You were trying to keep them from seeing the bad things and, because we're just kids, you weren't looking beyond the here and now to see how that could hurt them."

As the two sat in comfortable silence, Caroline began to get the nagging sensation of being watched. Looking at the houses across the street, she did her best to see into the darkened shadows between the houses. Finally, she caught sight of a movement and, when she concentrated on that location, was able to make out the shape of someone standing there. Too quick to be human, though, because the shape was already gone.

There was an outside chance it was just Anna or Ben checking in on them, but she doubted that. More than likely, it was trouble. Like they needed more of that.


	8. Plan 9 From Mystic Falls

Over the next two weeks just about everyone noticed –or at least _sensed_ –the presence of the vampire peeping tom that Caroline had spotted after what she had mentally dubbed 'The Big Reveal'. She hadn't told anyone that night as most of them were still in a state of shock from learning about the upcoming possible doom. However, when she went to Sheila and her mother, they had quickly decided it was best for everyone to know and report any sightings. And report they had.

It became obvious very quickly that this particular vampire only showed up around Elena, so it was decided that she had to have a vampire with her wherever she went. Since Stefan and Caroline couldn't _always_ be with Elena, Lexi –who had decided to stay once she found out about all the trouble that would be coming for her best friend—would help out. Thankfully, Elena was now secure in the knowledge that Lexi was not a threat to her relationship with Stefan.

Caroline had other things to worry about on top of Elena's stalker. Given that she was head of the dance committee, she had to organize the Decade Dance. While it was a bit easier this time around –she simply stuck to the decisions she had made last time she organized for the fifties dance—there were some unexpected pangs of loss. The biggest of these was when Matt arrived to help set up. While she didn't regret trying to keep him out of everything supernatural, she did regret that it meant they would probably never even be friends.

She didn't want to date him again –that ship had sailed a long time ago and she was better off for it—but it would be nice to be able to talk to him. Instead, she ignored him in favor of talking to Bonnie. At least she got to keep _some_ friends.

Even as she let go of the possibility of being Matt's friend, painted signs with Bonnie, and mentally went over her checklist to make sure all was in order, Caroline could feel her anxiety levels creeping up. So far, Elena's newest fan had stuck to watching from the shadows. However, these things always got worse. Everyone had tried to prepare for any attack he might launch, but, as usual, it came in at a time they least expected it: while Elena was safe and sound in her own home.

Caroline had been staring blankly into her refrigerator trying to figure out what to have for dinner when she heard her phone ringing from the bedroom. The phone was in the middle of its third ring when Caroline picked it up from the bedside table and saw Stefan's name. She was smiling as she tapped the answer button and put the phone to her ear.

"Aren't you supposed to be enjoying pizza with your girlfriend's family?"

She could hear Elena fussing over an obviously annoyed Jeremy in the background and knew –even before Stefan began to speak—that Elena's stalker had finally made a move.

"A vampire tried to get into the house tonight. He had the pizza we ordered and tried to get Jeremy to invite him in. Jeremy almost got pulled outside, but I heard the struggle in time. We need to figure out what we're going to do."

Caroline promised to be right over and then hung up. While she did spend the drive over to Elena's trying to brainstorm up a plan, in the back of her mind she had to wonder exactly _how_ Jeremy almost got pulled out. They had practically pounded vampire safety precautions into his head almost as soon as they told him vampires actually existed.

As she walked into the house, she could hear Stefan trying to talk Elena out of barging up to Jeremy's room to demand he talk to her. As much as she loved Elena, there were more important things to worry about than her brother's emotional state right now. Obviously, Stefan wasn't going to play the kind of hardball it would take to get her to let it go. Caroline to the rescue.

"You need to worry a little less about Jeremy and a little more about yourself. Your number one stalker just escalated so I think it's time we switched from defense to offense."

Thankfully, Elena seemed to see the sense in that. After Caroline got a detailed description –who almost gets pulled out through a door by a pizza box they're holding?—she felt the beginnings of a plan form that she was pretty sure Stefan wouldn't like. Scratch that; she _knew_ Stefan wouldn't like it because it was the same basic plan that his brother had come up with when this kind of thing had happened before. In that time that didn't happen. She was really going to have to figure out a non-awkward way to refer to that whole situation.

Mentally shaking her head to get back on track, Caroline asked if either of them had gotten a good look at the vampire. When they both said no, she told them she would go talk to Jeremy. She made it a point to tell them she was going to talk to him _alone_ when Elena looked as if she would follow.

She could hear the sound of a pencil scratching quickly over paper as she neared Jeremy's door. She could only hope that Elena's mother hen routine –and that was supposed to be her thing, dammit!—hadn't put him in a sulky teenager state of mind. She did not have the time or patience right now to deal with that. She gave three firm knocks and waited.

"I _said_ I don't want to talk about my feelings, Elena!"

It was times like these that Caroline was grateful that she was an only child.

"Then it's a good thing I'm not Elena and I don't actually care about how you're feeling right now."

A few seconds later Jeremy opened the door. He still didn't look pleased to see her, even if she wasn't Elena, but it was a step in the right direction.

"I'm hoping you managed to get a good look at the vampire who tried to get in tonight. No one else did."

Even as she was still talking, Jeremy had turned his back on her and was walking toward his desk. Caroline closed her eyes and took a deep breath to control the urge to grab him and shake him. When she opened her eyes, he was walking back toward her, sketchpad in hand. She ignored the smug look on his face in favor of looking at what she now held in her hands. Part of her kept forgetting that Jeremy was a very good artist. So good, in fact, that the image in front of her might as well have been a photograph.

"Apparently, all those drugs didn't totally rot your brain, baby Gilbert!"

While the words were almost dismissive, her smile was very pleased. Ignoring his rolled eyes and offended attitude, Caroline grabbed his arm and pulled him toward the stairs.

"Come on, we have plans to make and traps to set!"

In the end, it wasn't all that difficult to convince Stefan to go along with her plan. Granted, he wasn't really a big fan of using Elena as bait at the dance, but with her solid debating and some firm insistence from the bait herself, he was willing to go along. It helped that she reassured him that Elena would have plenty of bodyguards at the dance and would never be alone. What Caroline didn't tell Stefan –or Elena and Jeremy for that matter—was that she was pretty sure that this vampire was somehow connected to Anna and Ben. The only way for her to know for sure, however, was to ask Anna herself.

After arriving back home, she called Sheila to let her know exactly what was going on. Sheila agreed that it was best to confront Anna at her hotel room during the day.

"Of course, if she's not there, we're going to have to take the compass and go searching all over the damn town for her."

Thankfully, that proved unnecessary the next morning as Anna was in her room. While she didn't look overjoyed to see them, she wasn't looking particularly worried either. This made Caroline believe that she didn't have anything to do with the attack at Elena's house. However, that didn't necessarily mean that she didn't know about another vampire.

"We have a small problem right now. I was wondering if you knew anything about it."

After Sheila explained what had been going on and flashed Jeremy's drawing, Anna began to look a bit worried. When she finally spoke, her voice was pleading and she seemed to be rushing to get the words out.

"I know the vampire that's going after the doppelgänger. He's doing it because he's completely obsessed with Katherine. I didn't know he'd start going after the girl, or I would have told you he was here. Please, I didn't have anything to do with it, I just want my mother."

While they had intended to stick to playing hardball –and Sheila could pull scary off well enough to do it—Caroline couldn't help but feel for Anna. She knew what it was like to be so desperate for your mother. She could still feel the gut churning terror that had run through her when she found her mother lying on the floor near death after having been attacked by Silas. It was this memory that had her walking over to the bed where Anna was sitting as she practically begged Sheila not to take her mother away from her. Wrapping one arm around the other girl's shoulder, she hugged her close and offered up a suggestion to Sheila.

"She knows this vampire. She could help us figure out what he's going to do next and maybe even the best way to lure him out."

At her words, Anna sat up straight and seemed eager to prove she could be an asset.

"His name is Noah. He's arrogant and reckless. He'll assume that he'll be able to get to Elena and beat anything you send at him. If he's gotten to the point where he attacked once, he's not going to be able to wait to attack again."

This worked well with Caroline's plan to lure him out. She was still thinking about this when she saw Sheila move. Suddenly, the cold and ruthless witch was gone and in her place was the Grams that Caroline remembered from those rare times when she would be over with Bonnie to visit. There was nothing but warmth and understanding coming from her as she knelt in front of Anna and took the vampire's hands in her own.

"It will be okay. We're going to open the tomb, and you'll see your mother again. I understand why you didn't tell us about Noah before. I'm glad you told us now. We're going to have to stop him, but that doesn't change our deal. You help us, and we make sure you mother gets out and you can be with her again."

This seemed to calm Anna and shortly after they left with a promise from her to call if Noah made contact. Caroline then dropped Sheila off at her house and headed home to start getting ready for the dance.

You would think, having gone through this before, that Caroline would have no problem choosing what to wear to the Decade Dance. Just grab what she wore last time and go! While she _knew_ that she hadn't actually worn the floral skirt and matching sweater before, she could still _remember_ wearing it. That, coupled with the fact that she knew there would be trouble at the dance – _not_ having trouble at a dance would be an oddity, but this time they were inviting it—Caroline instead opted for a pair of dungarees and a retro fifties top. Not exactly appropriate party wear for the time, but pants were better for fighting in than skirts.

Even with having to choose a completely new outfit, it didn't take Caroline the two hours to get ready that it did when she was human. However, that left even more time for her to worry and nothing to distract her from her anxiety and fears.

Luckily, she had managed to calm herself down before heading over to pick up Bonnie. Despite the jokes about having the best looking date at the dance –and both of them were looking _very_ good in Caroline's opinion—there was still a palpable tension in the car. One day they would get to have a dance or a party where it didn't feel more like they were gearing up for another battle in a never-ending war. One day.

After all the time spent on edge while keeping an eye out for Elena's stalker and waiting for him to attack, taking him down was relatively anticlimactic. They all knew what he looked like so, even though Stefan was sent on a wild goose-chase after some poor kid whose only crime was accepting Noah's hoodie, they managed to spot him before he got too close. Of course –given that they wanted him to get close to Elena away from the crowd—that only meant that they got to watch as he chased her down.

Caroline was impressed by how much Elena fought back against the vampire. She could have played the damsel in distress and called for the help she knew was just waiting to pounce. However, she did get in a few good hits with a pencil –maybe those episodes of Buffy were doing some good after all. And, if there were points awarded for thinking on your feet, she'd definitely get them for the mop she broke to try and stake him.

However, Caroline thought that maybe Elena was a bit too compassionate to be a future vampire slayer. She looked shocked and even a bit appalled when Stefan used the same mop handle she had broken to stake Noah. Or maybe she wasn't too compassionate; maybe being a vampire made a person too ruthless. It really didn't matter. All the navel gazing in the world wouldn't change the fact that Noah wouldn't stop coming after Elena unless he was dead and none of them were going to let him hurt Elena. 

Not surprisingly, none of them really felt like staying at the dance after that. Feeling too wired to go home, Caroline put in a quick call to Sheila to see if she was still awake. Luckily, the class she was supposed to teach the next day wasn't until the afternoon, so she was up studying Emily's grimoire. On the drive from the school, Caroline found herself thinking of Katherine. She knew that opening the tomb and letting out Pearl would force Katherine to make a move so that word wouldn't get back to Klaus that she was alive.

The only way that Caroline could think of to get Katherine to really listen would be to trap her somewhere so she couldn't escape and couldn't hurt anyone. It wasn't until Sheila opened the door that the perfect solution dawned on her. Caroline's wide eyes and excited demeanor had Sheila raising her eyebrow even before the vampire opened her mouth.

"We're going to have to let the Town Council know about the tomb."

While the plan took some hammering out, it was relatively simple. Two weeks later, members of said council were busy dragging desiccated vampires up the stairs leading out from the tomb where Stefan and Liz had stakes ready and waiting. Across town in a hotel, recovering from nearly a century and a half being trapped without blood, Pearl was being tended to by her daughter. On the bed next to them sat Harper –who Pearl had nearly begged them to release as well—being tended to by Caroline.

"They'll never know you were let out. We planted vervain and Bonnie and Sheila sped up the growth. As far as the Town Counsel knows, Stefan found out about the location of the tomb from some family journals, got curious, and found all the vampires inside. Not knowing how long they'd been there, he began planting vervain and trying to figure out how to kill them. Finally, he contacted his uncle to see if he had any ideas. He told them Zach informed him of the council and that he was more than willing to take over supplying them with vervain."

Pearl seemed to take this all in stride, showing no real reaction on her face. Finally, she tilted her head a bit and stared Caroline down.

"And what is it you want in return for freeing us?"

Though she didn't come right out and say she would cooperate, Caroline could tell by her tone of voice that she was keeping an open mind.

"I need you to tell me everything you know about the vampire who can kill Klaus. Specifically, I need to know _how_ exactly Mikael plans on actually doing the killing."


	9. Allegiances Have Formed Your Destiny

Brilliant bursts of light bloomed in the night sky above Mystic Falls as Liz lay back on the blanket next to Caroline with her hands folded on her stomach. It had been far too many years since she and her daughter had enjoyed any holidays together. When Bill left, everything had been too painful for her and Caroline seemed to blame her for the divorce. It had just been easier to go along with it when her daughter told her she would be spending the holidays with her father. Looking back, maybe she should have fought it; maybe a better parent would have. Hell, maybe it's what Caroline had really wanted. However, it was too late to change the past.

At that last thought, Liz's lips turned up in a small smile. Given what her daughter had done and was still in the process of doing, that didn't seem as true as it once had. With a mental shake, she decided that she would try not to think about Caroline's time traveling or the imminent arrival of very old and very dangerous supernatural creatures. Of course, _not_ thinking of those things would be easier said than done.

Glancing over at her daughter's relaxed face, Liz was struck by the thought that, had the supernatural world not invaded her daughter's life, they wouldn't have had this.

Seeming to sense that her mother's mood had shifted, Caroline rolled her head and looked at her mother questioningly. Sticking with their unspoken rule of no more secrets –even small ones—Liz decided not to hold back on talking about what was bothering her.

"I just realized that I'm _grateful_ that you've gone through everything you have, because it gave us this. And then I realized how awful of a mother that makes me."

Turning over onto her front, Caroline reached for one of Liz's hands and stared at her with a very serious and determined look on her face.

"You are _not_ an awful mom. You're allowed to be happy that we're closer now and that we don't keep big secrets from each other. I _know_ it doesn't mean that you're glad I went through what I did, it just means that you're happy that the universe gave us this to balance it out."

Caroline shifted to sit up and Liz did the same when she realized her daughter wasn't finished.

"Going through everything that I have, it's taught me a lot. One of the things that it taught me is that we have to find every bit of joy and happiness we can, no matter how dark the situation is. The good in our lives isn't just going to appear, we have to seek it out and grab onto it, to _fight_ for it. Sometimes that means being grateful for the crappiest of things, but that doesn't mean we're happy that the crappy things have happened."

Before she could comment on her daughter's mature and optimistic outlook on the situation, Liz caught sight of Pearl, Anna, and Harper walking toward them. It had only been roughly three weeks since Caroline had let Pearl and Harper out of the Tomb but, thanks to an early Christmas present of all new fake identities, they had managed to start making a place for themselves in Mystic Falls. The part of Liz that had been raised hating vampires still cringed at the idea that she had agreed to inviting the three to stay. She was slowly coming to accept that this evil –if it was, in fact, evil—was a necessary one. There were far worse things coming down the pike, and her daughter had a plan.

"Happy New Year, Caroline, Sheriff. I trust you're enjoying yourself."

Either Pearl had managed to let go of the resentment Liz had at first been the target of –due entirely to her connection to the founding families—or she was a very good actress. Either way, the woman had been nothing but polite and cooperative once she had decided that Liz fully intended to keep every promise her daughter had made in her name. That still didn't make Liz comfortable around vampires that weren't related to her. Caroline, however, seemed to have no such issues.

"Indeed we are! Would you two lovely ladies care to join us?"

Judging by the fond smile on Pearl's face, Caroline had managed to win over yet another person. She had been doing that since she had first come into the world and becoming a vampire apparently hadn't lessened that particular skill. Even before Pearl could finish nodding her head slightly, Anna had let a grin spread across her face as she lowered herself down next to Caroline. When Caroline asked where Harper and Ben were, however, it quickly became apparent that Pearl wasn't there strictly for a social visit.

"Harper will be joining us later. Benjamin, on the other hand, has decided to leave us. Apparently, life in Mystic Falls is no longer something he desires."

At this Caroline pouted, just as she had every time she had hit a snag in her plans as a child.

"Maybe breaking out the PowerPoint this early on was a bit much. Do you think I scared him off?"

The last was said with a genuinely worried expression directed at Anna, as if she expected the girl to tell her that she had come on too strong and overwhelmed Ben with too much information. Anna, however, shook her head.

"I think he was scared off by the thought of vampire boogeymen invading our little corner out back of the beyond."

With this Caroline looked a bit ashamed.

"So, it was less the bullet points and colorful slides that sent him running and more the tales of horrific deaths potentially awaiting us. I probably should have just told him he would be fine if he just kept his head down and stayed out of it all." 

Pearl chose to answer in her daughter's place.

"You were correct in telling him the whole truth. He had the right to make an informed decision. I have not known you for long, Caroline, but I know you well enough to be aware that, had he stayed and suffered because he was unaware of just how dangerous the situation could get, you would have felt at fault."

Caroline seemed to accept this, at least to some degree. Before any more could be said on the matter, though, Elena appeared with Stefan on her arm looking like very uncomfortable arm candy. At some point Liz would get used to all the vampires roaming around the town but she didn't think it was going to happen any time soon.

"Elena and Stefan! How goes it in paradise?"

Stefan looked down with a small grin at this, but Elena's version of a smile was more than a bit distracted. Clearly she had come here to talk about something specific.

"It's great, actually. I was wanting to thank you. Jenna told me that you helped her out a lot when she was looking up information on my birth mother. Actually, what she said was that you did everything but box it all up and wrap it in a pretty bow for her."

It was said with affection, and Liz could clearly tell that her daughter took it as it was intended. That was a welcome change; there was a time when Caroline would have heard criticism in the comment. Of course, she also remembered a time not so long ago when Elena's words _would_ have been criticism. Maybe they were both growing up.

"That's what friends are for!"

Elena smiled and bite her lip a bit, clearly about to ask for something she thought Caroline might not want to give.

"Speaking of doing things for friends... I was planning on heading to Grove Hill to talk to Trudie Peterson, find out anything I can about Isobel, come with me?"

Elena ended with a pleading tilt of her head, which Caroline mimicked, scrunching up her nose.

"You still haven't talked to Alaric, have you?"

At Elena's guilty head shake, Caroline let out a resigned sigh.

"Fine, I'll go with you. However you, missy, are going to have to talk to him at some point. It could be a coincidence that he married a woman named Isobel who was from around here because that name is just _so_ common." 

Seeming to relent, she continued on in a more understanding voice, "You can always talk to him _after_ we talk to Trudie."

It should have disturbed her, how good of an actress her daughter was. In fact, if she hadn't known for a fact that Caroline was well aware of what had happened to Isobel and the fact that Elena's mother and the woman Alaric married _were_ one and the same, she would have been  fooled along with the rest of them.

Obviously uncomfortable with the topic, Elena quickly asked if Caroline had seen Bonnie around. While Caroline's expression clearly showed she saw through her friend's sudden interest, she played along.

"She's over there with her dad, her Grams, and _her mom_."

At the last, Elena's eyes got big and Caroline nodded to confirm that she'd really just said that Bonnie's mother had made an appearance.

"I think I'll just wait 'till tomorrow to talk to her, then."

They each said their goodbyes, Stefan's as quiet and unobtrusive as his hello, and were on their way. As uncharitable as the though was, Liz found herself half wishing that he had accompanied Ben on his way out of town. While he hadn't done anything to cause Liz to distrust him –and Caroline assured her mother that Stefan was on a strictly non-human diet-- she couldn't just get over a life-long belief that vampires were the enemy. Two things stopped her from making a suggestion to Sheila that they get Stefan out of town; Caroline might need back-up –canon-fodder, Liz thought, distraction for Elena, Sheila had said-- and she didn't think Caroline would go for it. Oh well. Maybe they would get lucky and Ben would call for help and Stefan would have to go running.

Just as she thought of Ben, Anna picked up the conversation where Elena and Stefan's arrival had initially seemed to end it.

"Ben doing a runner might be a bit of a problem."

Caroline seemed genuinely confused when she replied with, "He's more than free to go, in fact it's probably better for him. Besides, it's not like he has any top secret information he can sell to anyone."

At that, Pearl and Anna shared a look as if they didn't think Caroline would like what they had to say before Anna continued.

"Before he left, he made it clear that he knew you were the one, and I'm quoting here, 'calling all the supernatural shots' lately."

Heaving a resigned sigh, Caroline threw her hands up in a gesture of surrender and said, "There's not really anything we can do about that now and, unless he's planning on sticking around to get all chatty with anyone, it's really not going to make much of a difference."

Ben definitely wasn't thinking about sticking around talking to anyone. In fact, he had been thinking of nothing but putting as much distance between himself and Mystic Falls as possible. His only stops had been for gas and to grab a quick snack. Junk food, not blood. He had grabbed probably half of Caroline's stash and left her a note. Given that he had _told_ her he was grabbing the stash so he wouldn't risk killing some innocent bystander, he figured she would understand. The truth was, he was less worried about keeping his body-count down and more concerned with keeping on the move.

He had driven as fast and far as he could, but it was getting uncomfortably close to morning as Ben neared the motel. He wasn't necessarily proud of himself for running, but he couldn't say he felt guilty about it either. It wasn't his fight, and he honestly didn't owe any of them a thing. Anna had only turned him so she could use him as a spy around town, Pearl and Harper didn't seem to care when he left, and Caroline… Okay, maybe he felt slightly bad about ditching Caroline. She had gone out of her way to try and make sure he had as easy a time of it as possible adjusting to his new life. Glancing over at the laptop she had bought for him –winking at him and saying it wasn't her credit card so he didn't really have to thank her— almost gave him the urge to turn around and head back. Almost. The memory of Pearl's face when they were talking about _him_ kept Ben driving toward the motel and away from Mystic Falls. 

He hadn't meant to eavesdrop, but he had been making a sandwich –Caroline was actually right about eating regular food taking the edge off the urge to feed on people—and they were talking in the other room. They hadn't even bothered to try and be quiet and he'd only been half listening until he heard Pearl ask what was to keep Klaus from just killing everyone and taking what he wanted. He sped to the doorway and got there just as Caroline had opened her mouth to answer.

_Who's Klaus, and why is he going to kill everyone?_

He had asked it jokingly, thinking they had been exaggerating –like when you say you're mom is gonna kill you for tracking mud in the kitchen. Part of him still wished he had never overheard them let alone asked what was going on. What they had told him left him scared, but not half as scared as he was by the fact that he just _knew_ they had been holding back. They had tried to make it seem like nothing more than a visit from a powerful and temperamental dignitary, but he heard what it was that they weren't saying. The devil was coming to Mystic Falls, and he wasn't one to play nice.

Ben was brought out of his memory by the sight of the motel sign. He chose to put all thoughts of supernatural business out of his mind as he parked the car. As he closed the door and slung his laptop bag over his shoulder, he caught sight of a beautiful young woman making her way out of the motel's office. Deciding he could get a free room and a quick meal, he jogged toward her at a human pace and wasted no time in compelling her to find out if she was alone and inviting him to her room. While he was sure Caroline would have a lot to say about using compulsion like this when not strictly necessary, he also thought she'd be proud that he was thinking on his feet. After all, it wasn't like he had a lot of extra money, and he was planning on leaving the woman alive.

He was still congratulating himself on being resourceful as he stepped into the room only to be brought up short at the sight of two men sitting at the room's only table. The man closest to him and facing the beds had dark hair, a thick build, and was dressed like those trust fund babies who used to play on the football team with him. He even wore the same self-assured expression that said he'd never had a moment of doubt about what he would do with his life. That expression had Ben ready to sink his fangs in just to wipe it off the fucker's face.

Before he could act on that impulse, however, the second man stood. He was built leaner and he looked like a cross between a high-end pimp and a Russian mobster. As he walked forward, however, a cheerful smile spread across his face that somehow managed to send a chill up the back of Ben's neck.

"Benjamin! So glad you could make it before daylight, mate."

The man's accent was British and his tone was welcoming and friendly, but it didn't stop Ben from being confused as to who this man was and why he was acting as if he had been expecting Ben. The confusion must have shown on his face because the man gave a slight chuckle as he gripped Ben firmly by the shoulders.

"How rude of me. Let me _re_ -introduce myself. My name is Klaus, and you have information I want."


	10. Load the Car and Write the Note

Ben had been afraid before; he would even say he had been scared shitless. Nothing he had felt before could compare to the bone-deep terror that ran almost paralyzed him when the man before him introduced himself. 

The man's smile should have been charming, but there was something in his eyes that reminded Ben of the time he'd been out camping and come face-to-face with a bobcat. He had seen that it viewed him as prey; possibly its next meal. At the last minute something had spooked the bobcat off, but this time? With that same feeling wrapping itself coldly around his guts, he wasn't so he was going to survive. As Klaus – _Who's Klaus and why is he going to kill everyone?_ —wrapped an arm around his shoulders and led him further into the room like they were old buddies, the feeling stayed with him and nearly caused him to forget about the other two people in the room.

"Re-introduce yourself…" 

Ben's nearly inaudible whisper drew a questioning look from Klaus, so he clarified, "You said you needed to re-introduce yourself. I've never met you before." 

His answer was met with an indulgent smile.

"No, Benjamin, you don't _remember_ meeting me. We actually met behind your former place of employment. I… _encouraged_ you to find a reason to leave town and meet me here. I also encouraged you not to remember."

While Ben wasn't a genius, he was smart enough to connect the dots, "You _compelled_ me. But, vampires can't compel other vampires so… _How_ did you compel me?"

Klaus's grin was full of pride and mischief; the grin the devil gives you right before he explains _exactly_ how you got screwed over in your deal with him.

"You're right, vampires can't normally compel other vampires. I, however, am not your run of the mill vampire. I'm something more than a bit different."

It took a second for him to realize that they had neared the table. With a gesture from Klaus, the man seated there moved to the other chair.

"This is Maddox, a very useful friend of mine. Of course the lovely young lady you followed in here is Greta who is _also_ a very useful friend of mine. Why don't you have a seat, and we'll see if _you_ can become a very useful friend of mine."

He was almost too distracted by the dread forming in the pit of his stomach to pay attention to Klaus as he told the woman, Greta, to take Ben's keys and get his stuff from the car. He was still only half paying attention when Klaus then retrieved a notepad and pen from the nightstand and slide it across the table to Maddox. His attention was fully on Klaus, however, when he sat down in front of Ben with an almost blank expression on his face.

"Normally, I'd start this off nice and easy, just to see if you're willing to cooperate. However, you are young and scared. Young, scared vampires tend to do stupid things, and I don't have the patience for that today."

And with that, Klaus looked directly into Ben's eyes. "You are going to be calm and you are no longer going to be afraid. You will answer every question I ask you honestly."

Ben had been compelled as a human. As willing and eager as he had been to become a vampire, he'd still had the normal reaction when Anna first revealed she was one. Anna had compelled the memory of the experience completely away and ensured he'd be calmer and more accepting the next time she brought it up. He hadn't remembered any of it until he had been turned and the memories all came rushing back to him, but he did know the feeling of being compelled. In the back of his mind, he had to wonder if he'd remember this meeting or even the meeting behind the Grill.

He felt perfectly relaxed; all traces of the fear he had felt when he first came into the motel room were gone. As he watched Klaus lounge back on one elbow –still with that near-blank expression—he could only hope that he managed to either prove himself useful or, at the very least, not useless enough to kill.

The first question seemed easy enough: give me a list of all the vampires that you know of in Mystic Falls. Maddox took down all the names as he started with Anna –simply because she was the first vampire he'd known. After that, it was easy to list off Pearl –Klaus seemed to recognize the name—and Harper, Stefan and his friend Lexi, and even the vampire in the cellar that no one talked about. Sometime while he was rattling off those names, Greta came back in with his belongings.

He had told Klaus all the names he knew save one. Part of him fought hard against saying Caroline's name. The struggle must have been obvious because Klaus sat up and suddenly looked _very_ interested.

"Now, Benjamin, you don't strike me as the loyal type. Who is it you're trying to protect, and why?"

When he didn't answer right away, Klaus leaned forward and again looked directly into his eyes.

"What name are you trying not to say?"

He felt the other vampire's will wash over him and couldn't stop himself from answering in a wooden tone, "Caroline Forbes."

"Tell me, mate, what has you struggling so hard to protect this girl? Do you, perchance, happen to be carrying a bit of a torch for her?"

"No. She just went out of her way to help me. To show me how to make it as a vampire even though she hasn't been doing it any longer than me."

There was a large part of Ben that was relieved that he hadn't been harboring a secret thing for the little blonde cheerleader. He liked her well enough, but he had a feeling that a relationship with her could get more intense then he could handle. She just didn't strike him as a casual kind of person, not in the least.

After that, Klaus asked about who the witches in town were and if he knew about any human elements involved in supernatural business. He seemed to find it really amusing that the sheriff who was involved _also_ happened to be Caroline's mother. After a bit he seemed to lose interest in the roll call. He tilted his head and changed his tone, for all the world acting as if they were in the middle of a friendly conversation.

"When I talked to you in Mystic Falls, you said that I wasn't supposed to be there already. Tell me, how did you know I was coming?"

For a split second he debated trying to find a way out of answering. He quickly gave up the idea, however. Klaus would know he was fighting the compulsion and simply force it out of him anyway. He had been right when he said Ben wasn't the loyal type; it just wasn't in him. He had spent any amount of bravery and selflessness he had on trying to keep from revealing Caroline's name. He just hoped that anything he said wouldn't get her hurt. Or worse.

"I overheard them talking, planning for what they would do when you showed up. Planning for what to do before then."

A self-satisfied smirk made its way onto the older vampire's face. Apparently, he liked when people made a big deal over him.

"And what does Pearl plan to do about my arrival?"

If Ben were a better vampire—man, whatever—he would at least hesitate to correct the assumption that Pearl was in charge. However, he had never been _that_ guy.

"It's not Pearl making the plans. It's Caroline."

The laugh from Klaus was cruel and biting and his tone was condescending when he asked, "You expect me to believe that some freshly turned vampire is running the show?"

He wasn't sure if it was indignation at the slight on Caroline _or_ his being offended that his judgment was called into question that made him start spilling everything he could in order to convince Klaus.

"When they first confronted me and Anna, they made it seem like the old witch was in charge. It was like something out of a supernatural Godfather or something when they showed up at the motel. But as soon as they helped get Harper and Anna's mom out of the tomb, suddenly _Caroline's_ telling them what's going on, making all the deals, giving the go-ahead on all the decisions. In fact, it's Caroline who explained to me who you are."

At this Klaus looked very interested. The man definitely seemed to like having his ego stroked.

"And who exactly did Miss Forbes say I am?"

He could clearly picture the conversation, the elaborate explanation that Caroline had made that _clearly_ was designed to try and downplay how dangerous the situation was. He could even see the expression on Pearl's face that showed how truly intimidated she was by Klaus –definitely impressive given how very badass the lady herself came off. He didn't think he could find a way to say all that and get across what Caroline had clearly _not_ been saying; that Klaus might actually _be_ the devil. He could, however, latch onto the one thing she said that got across how dangerous the guy in front of him was.

"Keyser Söze."

While Klaus clearly didn't get the reference, Maddox's snort of amusement indicated that _he_ did.

"Who is Keyser Söze?"

It was self-preservation alone that kept Ben from laughing at Klaus's unintended movie quotation. Maddox, however, clearly had no desire to live given his immediate and full-out laughter.

"He was some crippled con-artist in a movie."

Ben had his priorities. Really, he did. However, he wasn't going to let Maddox's obvious stupidity lead Klaus to believe that Caroline –and by extension he—had somehow insulted him. He couldn't help the small eye roll as he turned a glare on the guy –definitely a dick—though.

"Did you even bother to _watch_ the damn movie, dickhead?"

Turning back to Klaus, Ben let himself get lost in the explanation in order to stem the river of fear that started running in his veins at the now-cold look on his face.

"Keyser was a criminal legend, a… a myth in the movie. Aside from the people who'd directly dealt with him, most didn't think he was anything more than a fairy tale. Basically, he was a puppet master that always found a way to get those who crossed him, and he manage to do it without anyone realizing he was even involved until it was too late, if at all. 

"The 'crippled con-artist' this idiot was talking about was just a disguise he used through the movie so that no one would know that he was there and running the whole thing. After all, whose gonna believe the small-time crippled guy who talks too much is the one who's pulling all their strings?"

The explanation not only seemed to calm Klaus, but also seemed to make him happy.

"When dear Caroline was explaining who I was to you, did she also happen to tell you how a freshly made vampire not only _hears_ about a supposed vampire boogeyman, but also finds out he's real?"

That was something that Ben hadn't even thought about. Caroline could be deceptively smart, lord knows she had everyone fooled who didn't look at her grades or any plans she put together, but this went beyond just being smart. She would have to be connected, and it hadn't seemed like Pearl or Anna were her connections.

"I… I never asked."

While he did seem disappointed, Klaus quickly moved onto another topic that, going by his gleeful expression and the way he rubbed his hands together with excitement, he was much more interested in.

"Now, tell me all about my doppelgänger!"  

While Ben spent the day telling Klaus every detail he knew about Elena, her friends, and all their habits, Caroline spent it talking Elena out of visiting Trudie right away and _into_ talking to Alaric.

"One, Trudie could possibly be nursing a New Year's Day hangover and, two, Alaric lives in a perpetual state of being hung over, so it wouldn't matter with him!"

Elena paused in her packing to sigh –overly dramatic, in Caroline's opinion.

"We just have today and the weekend before we have to go back to school, Caroline, and then who knows how busy we'll be. I want to do this as soon as possible."

Without waiting for a reply, she turned back to her suitcase. Trying a different tack, Caroline pulled the suitcase out from in front of Elena.

"We'll go tomorrow. We can even get an early start. But, Elena, why are you packing? It's, like, an hour and a half drive up there. You… You don't think you're going to find your mom up there waiting for you, do you?"

She could tell by the expression on her face that she was right; that was _exactly_ what Elena had been hoping for in the back of her mind. While she knew for a fact that Isobel wasn't in Grove Hill, she couldn't just come out and say that to Elena; not without an explanation.

"Oh, sweetie. Even if your mom is up there, you two are strangers. You have to take this thing slow. Maybe a cup of coffee for now and making plans to meet up again soon."

Elena began to tear up as she turned around and slowly sat down on her bed.

"I just want this, you know? I find out that me dying is some key to breaking some curse on an old and more than likely violent vampire, and I wanted some good to balance it out."

Caroline quickly sat down next to her friend and wrapped an arm around her. As she felt Elena's head drop to her shoulder, she did her best to console her.

"I know you feel like this is some sort of 'last hope' or something, but it's not. Yes, there is a powerful and violent vampire coming to use you in a ritual, but we are working around the clock to make sure you live past that. And, while you've lost your parents, you still have Jeremy, and Jenna, and all your friends. We all love you and we're all here for you."

Leaning away from her, Caroline turned Elena by her shoulders so she could look the crying girl in the eyes.

"I _get_ that family is important. Trust me. But she hasn't been here for the past sixteen years, while most of us _have_ been. If she's not there, or if she doesn't want to be a part of your life for _whatever_ reason, you still have us. Don't lose sight of that."

Elena cracked a smile through her tears and wrapped her arms around Caroline's waist, leaning in to her friend's arms even as she nodded her head in understanding. 

The next morning the two girls set out for Trudie's house in Elena's SUV –minus Stefan, no matter how much he had tried to argue that he should go along with them. On the way, Caroline convinced Elena that she should go in alone, _after_ Caroline listened closely to the house to make sure there weren't any surprises waiting for her friend of course. She told her it was because Elena deserved to have this all to herself and Elena seemed to believe her. However, as they pulled to a stop and the engine cut out, Elena proved that she wasn't letting the possibility of meeting her mom distract her from the big picture.

"You don't want to go up there with me because you think it's possible Trudie knows something about vampires. You think that, because Sheila found out about my being adopted right when she found out my being a doppelgänger, that my mom is somehow wrapped up in all this with the curse and Klaus. I think… I think you could be right, and it _is_ best for you to stay here just in case. Just, keep an ear out for me?"

For a moment, Caroline was struck by how much Elena had to deal with. She was only a girl, and she was asked to make tough decisions and risk her life on a gamble; to put her life in other people's hands.

"Of course, Elena. If you need me, just yell and I'll… Find a way to get to you."

With an almost tearful nod, Elena stepped out and walked around the car and up to the door. Even knowing that this was the place and that Trudie did know Elena's mom, Caroline still held her breath and waited for some a sign that she was right. It didn't escape her attention that Trudie never actually invited Elena in; smart move. Elena fed her the same line about Caroline wanting her to have this all to herself when asked if her friend wanted to come in. While part of her wanted to give Elena privacy, she _had_ promised to keep an ear out for her.

Throughout the entire conversation, she could hear the discomfort in the woman's voice. As much as she tried to play it off like she was pleased that Elena had tracked her down, _something_ obviously had her scared. Caroline was damn sure it was Isobel as soon as she heard Elena ask if it was vervain in the tea. Of course, the creepy man walking into the middle of the street and staring at the house _also_ clued her in.

She was stepping out the car when Elena came down the walk. Her friend was too distracted to notice the guy watching her, so Caroline decided it was best to intervene. No, nothing had happened to her last time, but that didn't mean things hadn't changed this time around somehow.

"Go around the front of the car, Elena."

She heard Elena start to ask her why, but she kept her eyes on Elena's most recent stalker.

"Just do it, Elena."

Her friend did as she was told and the man didn't start walking until they started driving off. The part of Caroline that wanted to save the world screamed at her to go back and make sure he didn't go after Trudie, but she pushed it down ruthlessly. Trudie wasn't a priority; Elena was.

Caroline managed to put Trudie out of her mind the rest of the day. Finding out that her mother had somehow convinced Lexi's boyfriend Lee to play single for the bachelor auction –and when did he even come to town?—helped on that front. That night, at the event, Lexi hung out with her as she sold raffle tickets.

"So, what's the plan Lexi? You going to buy as many tickets as you can before it gets awkward, or just stalk Lee and whoever wins him?"

Lexi did her best to appear unaffected as she said, "Lee and I trust each other. We're both too old for anything like that."

Nodding as if she agreed, Caroline hummed before asking, "So, stalking it is?"

Lexi simply held her glass up for a toast as she laughed. Honestly, it was so good to have someone to laugh and drink with, even if her drink had to be of the non-alcoholic variety. They spent most of the night like that; simply watching what was going on. For a little bit, Caroline could forget all about time traveling, curse breaking, and meeting a version of Klaus that might not be as fond of her. _Not_ that it would be a bad thing if he wasn't. 

When Lee left with the woman who had won the raffle for him, Lexi excused herself to go discreetly follow them. Caroline saw Lee look back at his girlfriend once and the look was pure love. She pushed down the spark of jealousy and let Elena pull her along to where Stefan standing by the door ready to leave.

Waiting for them outside was the creepy guy from outside Trudie's.

"I have a message for you."

Caroline could tell by the even tone and blank face that the reason he had seemed so creepy, and still did, was because he was under compulsion. She could only watch as he told Elena to stop looking, making it obvious that it was Isobel who had sent him. Regret ran through her at the idea that she could have found a better way for Elena to find out that her mother was a vampire. The regret was quickly replaced by a sense of dread as he asked if Elena understood. When he repeated it for a second time, Caroline quickly interrupted.

"Don't answer him."

Rather than answer the obvious questions, Caroline went up to the man to try and stop what she was certain was coming. Looking deep into his eyes, Caroline tried to force her will on him.

"You won't be able to deliver the message here, you need to follow her home."

Unfortunately, that didn't seem to really work as he simply looked at Elena and asked, yet again, if she understood. Maybe it was because Elena wasn't truly exposed to how cruel vampires could be, but she didn't make the connection, didn't see _why_ Caroline had insisted that she not answer. So, when he asked again, Elena said, "Yes, I do."

She could see the tension leave the man's body with the answer, and he replied with, "Good."

Caroline turned back to Stefan to see if he thought that they'd gotten off easy and so she barely paid attention as the man said, "I'm done now."

By the time she had turned around, it was already over.

Even as she rushed to the truck alongside Elena and Stefan, she was already pushing his death into the same box as her worry over Trudie. They weren't the priority; Elena was. One day, she was going to have to unpack that box and figure out what kind of a vampire its contents made her. Picking up the man's dropped cellphone quick than the human eye, she put _that_ thought out of her head.

While Stefan's first instinct had been to run, Caroline convinced him to stay. They hadn't done anything wrong and too many people had seen them talking with the man. He had no ID, so the police that made it to the scene easily bought into the idea that he had been harassing Elena simply because he was mentally unstable.

Later that night, sitting on Elena's bed and facing the still distraught girl, Caroline opened the man's cell phone. Navigating to the most recent calls, Caroline called the only number there. In two rings a woman answered the phone with a very calm, "Was there a problem?"

Doing her best to answer in a strong and commanding voice, Caroline replied, "Hello, Isobel. My name is Caroline, I'm a friend of Elena's. I think it's time we meet."


	11. And I'll Be on the Sidelines with My Hands Tied

Isobel hadn't agreed to meet with Caroline. In fact, right after Caroline had told her that it was time they met, the woman had hung up on her. Though, thinking about it, maybe it was for the best that she had gotten spooked. At the time of the call, Caroline didn't have any concrete ideas on how to deal with her. Besides, she still had to deal with the fallout from Isobel's little warning.

She had tried to talk herself out of driving back up to Grove Hill the morning after the man Isobel had compelled to kill himself –Steven Kurtz, according to the visiting detective— had done just that. However, as convincing as her arguments were, Caroline still found herself traveling north on US-340 with a knot of dread making itself felt in her gut. She half-heartedly tried to come up with excuses to give as to why she had stopped in, but she had a feeling that she wouldn't need them. That feeling turned out to be right and she didn't even bother slowing down as she passed Trudie's home, now blocked off with yellow police tape.

It made her less inclined to make sure that Isobel got through everything all right. Of course, Caroline wasn't sure how many dead bodies she could fit into that box in her mind before she had to face who she was becoming. There were three already with the recent casualties, but she didn't have to face that person today, so she maybe she could fit one more.

Nearly two weeks later and she had managed to push down the memories of Trudie and Steven well as thoughts of _not_ saving Isobel. However, pushing down such terrible things left her precious little energy to ignore the smaller little things. Namely, it left her unable to ignore the fact that Elena and Stefan were on a cutesy double date with Lexi and Lee. It's not that she begrudged either couple their happiness –lord knows she was a big believer in finding happiness even in the midst of danger and chaos—she just wished _she_ could have a bit of happiness as well.

Pearl was a little less than sympathetic when Caroline complained –she would never admit to _whining_ —about it as they were looking into spells to ensure that the vampire and werewolf used to break Klaus's curse survived right along with the doppelgänger.

"What you're doing now is more important than that. When this is over, you'll have more time than you can imagine for romance and double dates."

What Pearl said wasn't wrong, but it wasn't really what Caroline was talking about. Putting down the dusty old tome she had been looking through, she looked over at the older vampire, hoping she would _get_ it.

"I don't want to look back on what little time I have with my human friends and… and with my mother and see nothing but obscure resurrection spells and Goldberg-esque plans. I want silly double dates, and pointless high school dances. I want to be a teenager while I'm still _actually_ a teenager. I'm not going to be like Stefan and go through high school again and again. It's a one shot deal for me, and I want to make the most of it."

Pearl reached out a hand to tuck some of Caroline's hair behind her ear and gave a small smile.

"If this all works out, you'll still have plenty of time to be a teenager while you are one."

Seeming to try and shake off the wistful mood that Caroline's speech had brought on, Pearl laughed quietly and asked, "Why is it that two _vampires_ are looking through old magic books? Where are the Bennett witches?"

Caroline picked up the old book she had been looking through as she tried to appear nonchalant in her answer.

"They have another spell they have to look up. One that they may have to basically create from scratch."

Pearl looked a bit put out and her tone was bordering on aggressive as she continued her questioning.

"More important than making sure all three people who are to be sacrificed in this ritual come back? Do tell, what could be more important than that?"

For a minute, Caroline considered lying to her. But, really, what would be the point? If the older vampire hadn't run for the hills yet, she wasn't going to just because she picked up on the hint that something more was going on. Besides, it wasn't like Caroline was going to tell her about Silas and the potential resurrection of all the dead supernatural creatures.

"It doesn't end with the curse being broken. That's just the first step. And, to be frank, when it comes to the sacrifices, survival isn't mandatory. It's just something I'm trying really hard to ensure."

She could see suspicion written all over Pearl's face before she even started to ask her next question. "Besides Elena Gilbert, who is to be sacrificed?"

She wasn't sure what it was that made her want to avoid giving the answer that Pearl was asking for. "There's a werewolf coming to try and get the moonstone. We'll either use him or, if we can get in touch with his pack, one of them."

Pearl waited for a beat or two, clearly expecting her to finish, but Caroline found herself very reluctant to confess the rest.

"And the vampire you plan to use?"

Caroline didn't answer, but whatever look was on her face was apparently enough. Pearl abruptly stood and began pacing in front of where she was still seated. It felt a bit like those times when she had done something so disappointing that her mother hadn't been able to find the words to even yell at her. Finally, Pearl stopped and stared at her with a fierce expression.

"And if we can't find this spell?"

Caroline's silence seemed to be the breaking point for Pearl. Faster than she could blink, Pearl was in her face with her hands clamped tightly around the girl's upper arms.

"If we can't find the spell to bring back the sacrifices, Caroline, what vampire are we going to use in the ritual?"

Caroline couldn't stop the tears from rolling down her cheeks. She wanted to be brave, or even confident that they could find the spell, but when it was all said and done she was just a scared teenager faced with imminent death.

"How could I ask somebody to die in my place?"

Pearl looked like she had been sucker punched. After a quick moment, however, her expression hardened and she bit out a definitive, "No."

Standing up to her full height and staring down at Caroline, Pearl looked every inch a queen or a general handing down an order. She was obviously drawing a line in the sand, and part of Caroline couldn't help but feel touched that her life somehow meant so much to this woman.

"I don't care what criteria we have to meet to find a vampire that you wouldn't hate yourself for putting in your place, but we will not be losing you. You want my help and whatever weight my opinion carries with Klaus, and you shall have it. However, this is my price."

Caroline wondered for a moment if this was how Elena felt when someone she didn't really know all that well was so concerned for her welfare. Pearl was not one for long, drawn-out displays of emotion, however, so they were both quickly back to searching through obscure resurrection spells. For the rest of the night, though, Caroline felt less upset about the fact that she wasn't currently out on a date or even involved with someone. Sometimes, just having someone care if you lived or died was enough.

That warm feeling carried her through the rest of the night, off to sleep, and was still with her in the morning. In fact, it had her smiling and even occasionally humming as she poured herself a cup of coffee and lasted right up until the moment that she saw someone standing at her front door.

It only took her a second to realize that it was Ben at the door. Quickly after _that_ realization there came a feeling of dread in the pit of her stomach. He looked nervous and harmless, but something about the situation was setting off alarms for her. Knowing she couldn't just stand there and stare at him for the rest of the morning, Caroline quickly poured another cup and, with a hopefully friendly smile, headed off to face down whatever trouble she was sure he brought to her doorstep. She thought she deserved points for waiting until they were both seated on the front porch steps and he was staring into his cup before she began to grill him.

"Not that I'm _not_ happy to see you, Ben, but what brings you back to town? I was under the impression you'd left for good."

He didn't look like he had any intention of drinking his coffee, only staring into it instead of looking at Caroline.

"I _had_ left town for good. Or at least I thought I had. I'd made it pretty far, actually, just outside of St. Louis. I managed about a ten and a half hour drive in under six hours. Though, I'm pretty sure I broke a lot of laws to do it. 

"I was doing good for the first week. But, uh… But by the second week the blood bags I'd gotten from your stash ran out."

By the time Ben finished his last sentence, Caroline could hear the quaver in his voice. She had a feeling she knew where this story was headed, and that someone was going to die by the end of it. However, she could tell he needed to tell someone, so she didn't interrupt.

"There was this kid, he couldn't have been more than twelve. He had fallen outside the motel while he was playing, and I could smell the blood. I tried everything in those notes you gave me, but he was still there and I could still smell him. I don't even think he had realized that he was bleeding. I almost…"

At this he abruptly set down his mug between his feet and almost violently rubbed his hands over his face. With a deep breath and a cough, he stared intently at the hands now clenched between his knees and continued on in a steadier voice, "If it hadn't been for Maddox, I would have killed that boy."

Suddenly, Caroline felt very cold. Maybe Maddox was another vampire that Ben met while he was in Missouri, or he could have been just some random Good Samaritan that happened by when Ben needed him most.

"Maddox?"

Ben looked up questioningly, and then his face cleared and he got a small smile on his face.

"He's this witch that was staying at the hotel. He was on his way back from picking up dinner when he saw me and figured out I was about to lose it. He helped me calm down, even picked me up some blood bags, and helped me figure out that even with the coming danger, I needed your help too much to stay away."

Okay, a random witch helping a vampire on the verge of chowing down on an unsuspecting little kid? The odds of him being anything _but_ a set-up were slim to none. Caroline's feeling of dread only increased as Ben turned toward her with a hopeful expression.

"He came back with me, just to help me out. He bought a place not too far from here…" at her raised eyebrows he rolled his eyes. "Yeah, he's pretty loaded. Anyway, he's letting me stay with him. I told him all about you and how you were helping me out. I even showed him the slides you did up and everything. I think you two could be friends. You know, if you're still willing to help me out."

And Slim just left town. As soon as she heard that this _miraculously_ understanding witch was not only willing to help out a vampire but also to move to another state and put said vampire up in his new place, she _knew_ Klaus had sent him. However, the puppy dog expression on Ben's face left her wondering if he was that good of an actor or if he actually believed this guy was his friend. Either way, she couldn't just leave him hanging.

"Of course I'm still willing to help you! I wouldn't just leave you to figure it all out on your own, even with your new friend."

Thinking quickly on her feet, Caroline put on a wide and slightly conspiratorial smile while she leaned a bit closer to Ben.

"Speaking of your new friend, we should totally throw a small housewarming party! I know he might be a little bit wary of having a bunch of vampires over, but how about me, Bonnie, and her Grams?"

Ben looked a bit lost for a minute, but then his expression cleared and he grabbed his cell phone to make a call, 

"Hey, Maddox! How do you feel about a last minute housewarming party? Maybe… tonight?" At the last, he looked at Caroline who gave him an encouraging smile and thumbs up.

On the other end of the phone she could hear a male voice expressing a bit of reluctance about inviting a bunch of vampires over to his home. Ben was quick to reassure him, though.

"No, man, the only vampire will be Caroline. She figured you wouldn't be all that happy about inviting a bunch of us into your home so she says it can be just be her and two witches from around here. You know, to kind of help you feel at home and everything."

The smile Ben sent her way was almost too sincerely contented, but she smiled in return, deliberately not acting like the situation was anything _but_ normal. While she kept an ear on his conversation with Maddox, Caroline sent a text out to Bonnie and Sheila, letting them know not only about the housewarming, but also what she really thought Ben's new friend was up to.

One homemade lasagna later –let it never be said that Caroline Forbes did _not_ go all out—she and two badass witches were knocking on the door of Ben's new place. The man who answered the door was _maybe_ a touch taller than Caroline, had dark hair, and had d-bag written all over his smug face. Of course, it could just be memories of when Maddox had taken her hostage to be Klaus's sacrifice that had her disliking him now. She really should stop judging people based on things that they hadn't done and may not _ever_ do in this timeline, but, as she had once told Matt –or had never and would never tell him—she just wasn't that evolved.

He stood back and let Bonnie and Sheila in and then simply looked at her with a small smirk. She was _not_ going to play this game; she was not going to let one of Klaus's minions get the better of her. Plastering on her best Future Miss Mystic Falls smile, Caroline did her best to make him believe she thought it was some light teasing and not a pissing contest.

"You don't get any of my homemade lasagna unless you invite me in and, trust me, _you_ cannot make lasagna this good."

There was only a slight hesitation before he simply replied with, "Caroline Forbes, please come in."

Yeah, definitely a d-bag.


	12. The Crow on the Cradle

Sheriff Forbes was doing everything she could to avoid going home today, including the paperwork which she hated with a passion. She absolutely loved her daughter, fangs and all, but Liz was just never a beauty pageant kind of a person and didn't think she could handle getting pulled into that world today. If she went home that was exactly what would happen though, the same way it had been happening for the past two weeks.

Caroline had explained to her that, although she had become Miss Mystic Falls before, there were things she could do better this time around. Liz was doing everything to forget how her daughter had stumbled over what to call that other time as it had just left her confused. Another thing she was trying to forget was her failed attempt at explaining to her daughter that she didn't have to try and be better. The look of bewilderment on her face as if she didn't understand that she was good enough as she was had broken Liz's heart and left her feeling guilty. She supposed she deserved these little reminders that she hadn't always been a good mother, that maybe _she_ was part of the reason her daughter was convinced she had to work so hard just to be good enough.

Liz had quickly decided to head back home to try doing the motherly thing and find a way that she could connect to the beauty queen side of her daughter. Before she could even stand up from her desk, however, there was a knock on the office door and the slight squeak of the hinges as it opened. Looking up she felt ready to kick herself for not deciding to go home at least five minutes earlier.

"John, I didn't know you were back in town."

That was a lie, of course. Caroline had warned her that John Gilbert was probably going to be coming to town to cause trouble, but knowing that hadn't really prepared her for having to _deal_ with him. Everything about him – from his smarmy smile to his condescending attitude— rubbed her the wrong way. To be honest, she had disliked him since they were children and forced to interact as their families went about council business. She watched as he closed the door, casually strolled into the room, and then proceeded to lounge in the chair across from her desk as if he owned the place; she came to the conclusion that he was still an absolute asshole.

"Well, _Liz_ , when I found out my town discovered a tomb full of vampires and didn't bother telling me, I just had to come and find out what was going on."

Even _knowing_ he was lying to cover his real reason for being here, she was still pissed off.

"We had a situation and we took care of it. You weren't needed and, quite frankly, you weren't wanted."

Even before she saw his eyebrows raise and heard the amused huff from him, she knew what was coming.

"Really, you took care of it? And what if I were to tell you that three of the vampires you supposedly 'took care of' escaped and one was trying to buy my brother's office?"

Had she not been prepared, his little jab might have left her feeling defensive and confused as to how he knew that _any_ of the vampires had gotten out let alone _who_ they were. She _was_ prepared, though, and so she simply gave him an indulgent smile and answered in a faux sweet voice, "I'd say it was _two_ vampires and that they didn't _escape_. I let them out. I'd then ask if you were aware that there were about seven _other_ vampires in town aside from those two."

For a moment John looked absolutely dumbstruck. It was not an attractive look. Unfortunately, he managed to recover and quickly went on the attack.

"I'm almost eager to hear what the council is going to say when they find out that one of their members, their very own _Sheriff_ in fact, is siding with vampires."

It was moments like these that Liz was grateful that her daughter had already been through this and was able to feed her information that she wouldn't normally have.

"They're not going to know about it. You see, if they did, then they would potentially kill the vampires in this town. If that were to happen then there would be no one here left to negotiate with Klaus for Elena's survival. None of us would want that, now, would we?"

She couldn't remember ever feeling this level of gratification. One-upping John Gilbert gave her a very visceral feeling of satisfaction that almost had her baring her teeth at him. Some of that must have shown through in her expression, because he kept quiet as she stood and walked around her desk to lean against it and tower over him.

"I understand what it's like to want to protect your child." At his surprised expression, she only gave a nod to let him know that she was aware he was Elena's father while she continued on without missing a beat.

"What you need to understand is that Klaus already knows that Elena not only exists, but that she's here in Mystic Falls. We have a plan to ensure that she walks away from this alive and human, and with very little in the way of a real body count. She's already agreed to it."

Liz could see he was getting ready to interrupt, so she quickly stopped him.

"You don't need to know what the plan is. Right now, what you need to do is run on back to Isobel and tell her to back off, and tell Katherine that saving her is part of the plan so as long as she provides us with all the information she has. We'll be expecting her call."

Liz pulled one of Caroline's light pink business cards out of her wallet –there were some very helpful aspects to having a well-prepared daughter—and handed it to a now slightly bemused John. He got up to leave but, before he could open the door, she stopped him.

"We didn't tell Elena that you're her father _or_ that Isobel is a vampire. We thought that would be better coming from you."

As John closed the office door, Liz let out a deep sigh. At least she'd have an excuse to give Caroline for why she was so late coming home.

Back at home, though, Caroline hadn't even been thinking about her mother not having arrived yet. She had been bouncing ideas off of and venting to Bonnie all day.

The result? As much as Bonnie loved Caroline, she needed a break.

"Sweetie, if you _know_ Jeffery is going to be a bad partner for this, why not choose someone else?"

At this all the fight seemed to leave Caroline and she collapsed onto the chair. Sitting across from the frustrated future Miss Mystic Falls –because, honestly, who besides Caroline could doubt it?—her friend felt at a loss to help.

"I know I shouldn't be all worked over this pageant. It's just… I can't stand the waiting!"

At this, Caroline sprang back up to her feet and started pacing at what Bonnie was sure was a faster-than-human speed.

"We've got the spell to bring back Elena, and you and your Grams have already figured out how to make it work for the werewolf and me. We're all ready to go except _now_ we have to wait to hear from Katherine and for Mason to show up. If I don't focus on something else, I'm going to lose my mind!"

Bonnie noticed that, even in her worked-up state, Caroline didn't mention the other spell that she and Grams had been working on. When it was first brought up Grams had been dead set against it and there had been many heated arguments. She had mostly stayed out of the discussion, partly because she could see Caroline's point, but also because she knew Grams would come around. And she had, of course, but things still got tense when it was brought up. Even thinking about it now had her on edge, so she quickly pushed the thought away.

Of course, it wouldn't have been possible to think about the spell, or _anything_ , even if she had wanted to because Caroline's frustrated pacing was far too distracting. She had also taken to mumbling to herself –Bonnie was convinced she had heard something about making sure she had a dress followed by something that sounded suspiciously like 'Cinderella fetish'— and her hand movements were getting more and more wild. In fact, the rocking chair had almost gone flying at one point.

When Caroline walked passed the couch where she was sitting, Bonnie grabbed her hand and stood up. With her friend finally still long enough to get a good look at her face, she could tell that Caroline really _was_ near the breaking point. Taking a deep breath and plastering on a smile, she did her best to help her friend cope.

"Have you thought of asking Harper or Lee? Those vampire reflexes should at least pay off in some decent dancing, shouldn't they? Or… maybe even Ben?"

Before Caroline could answer, her cell phone rang. Snatching it off the coffee table, she rolled her eyes when she saw the screen. Looking at Bonnie, she said, "It's Maddox," and then picked up.

As Bonnie listened to one side of the conversation, she began to wonder what exactly Klaus had in mind when he'd planted Maddox among them. While Caroline was pretty sure he was there for recon only, Bonnie couldn't help but think that he was up to something more than that. She had noticed that he had been trying more and more lately to get time alone with Caroline. If she didn't know that he had been sent there, she would think he had developed a crush on her friend.

Bonnie's thoughts came back to the here and now when she noticed an almost evil glint in Caroline's eye. Whatever she was about to say or wrangle Maddox into, she almost felt sorry for the guy.

"So… you wanna spend time together and get to know me for Ben's sake? Okay, Maddox, we can do that. Just one question, can you dance at all?"

For all that he worked for a vicious vampire, Bonnie truly _did_ feel sorry for him in that moment. As Caroline smiled and told him that she would be over at his place tomorrow, she wondered if the poor idiot knew what he was in for. One day under Caroline's control would probably send him running back to Klaus for mercy.

But all that pity didn't stop her from smiling as Caroline hung up the phone, however, and saying, "You know I'm going to be right there to watch every second of this, right?"

She might have still have been angry over the fact that –in another timeline, reality, or whatever—he had kidnapped her friend to be a sacrifice. Before Caroline could answer, though, they heard the front door open. Soon after, Sheriff Forbes stopped in the entry to the living room. As she slid her jacket off, Bonnie could see that she had something on her mind. Taking a deep breath, Liz walked into the room and draped her jacket over the back of the couch.

"I've got good news and bad news. The good news is that John Gilbert won't be telling the council that there are vampires in town and that I'm working with them. The bad news is that John Gilbert is in town."

After Liz told them exactly what happened –Caroline pressing her for even the smallest details the entire time—Bonnie made her escape. She thought she should feel bad for leaving Caroline's mother to deal with her pageant planning, but given that _something_ was happening on the supernatural front, she had a feeling that things would be less stressful for her friend now.

The next day, as they drove to Ben and Maddox's house –and how weird was it that he went to the expense of _buying_ a house instead of renting one or even renting an apartment?—her feeling seemed to be right. Caroline was smiling easier and her whole body just seemed so much more relaxed. Of course, it could be the thought of 'torturing' Maddox that was putting her in this mood, but Bonnie wasn't planning on judging her for that.

Nearly an hour after they arrived –and three or four direct insults later— she still wasn't judging. It wasn't that Caroline was being _particularly_ mean, she was just being Caroline. She expected perfection from herself and damn _near_ perfection from those around her. Although, at the end of the day, she would still tell you that you did a great job even if she had spent the whole time telling you everything you were doing wrong. You either learned to love it or you learned to avoid working with her.

During a break in the practice she was sitting on a stool at the kitchen bar while Caroline was sitting on one of the chairs they had pushed back against the wall to make room for dancing. Ben and Maddox had just come back in the room when Caroline surprised her with a question from seemingly out of nowhere.

"Bonnie, your Grams broke Damon's link with his crow before she let it go, right?"

"Yeah, she wouldn't have let that poor thing go without breaking it," she replied as she turned to look at her friend.

Caroline, however, wasn't looking at her. In fact, she was frozen in place and staring at the window. Bonnie turned to see what she was looking at and saw, on the other side of the glass, a black crow staring just as intently back at Caroline.

"I mean… that might not even be the same crow."

Okay, it was a lame denial, but the look Caroline turned on her was a bit much. Bonnie watched as her friend looked back toward the bird at the window for a moment and then, seeming to come to a decision, nodded her head and walked toward it. Maddox seemed to figure out what she was doing just as the window started to lift, if the inarticulate and slightly confused sounding noises coming from him were anything to judge by.

Caroline ignored his objections and let the bird in. Bonnie had expected it to either stay outside –possibly even fly off—or race in and fly around the room. What she wasn't prepared for, however, was for it to casually strut across the window sill and hop gently to the floor at Caroline's feet. It stared at Caroline for a bit and then turned its piercing eyes to her. It struck Bonnie then that the bird hadn't made a sound at all.

"Aren't crows usually… noisier?"

The bird tilted its head at the sound of Bonnie's voice and then began to slowly walk toward her, its head bobbing in time with its steps. Taking her eyes off the crow, she glanced at Caroline who just then seemed to register the question.

Staring at the bird, she answered in a voice that could easily be mistaken for distracted, "Damon didn't like his pets to talk much."

With a sudden sick feeling in the back of her throat, she realized that Caroline wasn't necessarily referring to animals when she said 'his pets'. Before the disgust, guilt, and anger could really build from that thought, however, Caroline was suddenly on the move and apparently coming up with a plan to figure out what was going on. Even as she made her way to the refrigerator, she was calling out orders.

"Bonnie, you need to call your Grams and find out if there's any way to make sure Damon hasn't somehow reconnected with our friend here. I'll go ahead and call Stefan so he can check in on his brother and make sure he's not getting up to anything. And Ben," Caroline was holding a half-rotten looking bag of what may have been some sort of vegetable that she had just taken from the fridge, " _you_ need to make a quick run to the store and pick up some fresh fruits, vegetables, and some sort of meat."

Ben didn't waste any time in rushing out the door, though he did spare the crow at least one suspicious glance. Maddox, on the other hand, was staring between the bird and Caroline with a very calculating expression on his face. If Caroline noticed it, she didn't give any indication. Bonnie _did_ notice and she didn't like it one bit, but she didn't have any time to worry about it right now because she had to call Grams.

While she was being reassured that the bond had been broken and then quickly walked through how to check to make sure the link was still severed and hadn't been reestablished –through which process the crow remained remarkably still—she could hear Caroline in the background essentially bullying Stefan into checking on his brother. At some point the boy was _really_ going to have to figure out to just do what they said without arguing.

By the time they were both off the phone and had the furniture set back to rights, Ben had come back with a grocery bag full of food. In short order, Caroline had a small bunch of grapes rinsed, separated, and placed in a bowl on the counter for the crow. Now they were all just sitting around watching the bird delicately pick out the grapes and eat them one by one.

While Bonnie didn't _remember_ Caroline saying anything about a crow when she talked about what she had already been through, it was possible she had simply… forgotten it. Okay, that wasn't likely, but still… While she couldn't come right out and say 'hey, did the crow do this weird stuff the other time you lived through this', she could ask in a roundabout way.

Hoping she came off as casual and not all 'I'm trying to say something without saying it', she asked, "Were you expecting something like this?"

Just then the crow turned to Caroline and gave a soft caw, nothing like the harsh tones she was used to hearing from the crows that would occasionally pass through town. Her friend stared at the bird for a second before answering.

"No, I wasn't. But I don't think this is just a coincidence. The bird's here for a reason."

As much as she would like to deny it, Bonnie was pretty sure that Caroline was right.


	13. Fate Will Have Its Way

While Caroline hadn't said anything to Bonnie about it, she still wasn't convinced that Damon didn't have something to do with the sudden appearance of the crow at Maddox's place. It hadn't tried to get her to follow it, and it hadn't really done much else beyond watching both her and Bonnie. However, that didn't mean it wasn't somehow trying to carry out its master's last command. Standing in the Salvatore basement with a bottle of blood and a three ounce cup at her feet, staring through the bars of the door at a clearly  _still_  desiccated Damon, she still wasn't convinced that wasn't the case. Why else would the bird continue stalking her?

She had managed to convince Sheila that it was important that she call Zach and have him issue her an invitation to the boarding house. The only one who could give her the answers was Damon himself. She wasn't going to underestimate him, however, and she definitely wasn't going to risk Bonnie. The latter was the reason she was skipping school and doing this on a Tuesday afternoon. It was also the reason she had called up Maddox and told him to meet her here.

When she heard him coming down the narrow passageway, she turned her head to watch his approach. His coat was draped over one arm and, if she wasn't mistaken, his shirt was tighter than what he usually wore. He also looked far too pleased to be there.

"As much as I love being at your beck and call, Caroline, is there a reason you wanted to meet me in someone's basement?"

Ignoring the complete lack of sarcasm in the first half of his statement, Caroline chose to focus on the second half.

"You're a witch, Maddox, and I need you to do witchy things for me."

With a bemused half-smile on his face, he asked, "And you just assume I can do whatever you need without any preparation?"

Rolling her eyes, she decided to take the risk of letting him know just how little she believed the story of how Ben and he came to meet.

"Unless you and Ben ran into another witch on the way to Mystic Falls, you're the one who gave him his ring. You not only knew the spell to create a daylight ring, but you also just  _happened_  to have a lapis lazuli ring on hand. I think you're prepared for a lot of things."

When she turned back to look through the window again, he came over to stand at her back and see what had her attention. While he was standing far closer than he needed to –though he was smart enough to not actually touch her—she didn't try and put any distance between them. It had been far too long since she had been anything close to intimate with another person.

"I take it this is the Damon you and Bonnie were concerned with the other day? The one somehow connected to the crow that paid us a visit?"

At Caroline's distracted nod, he leaned in slightly past her to get a better look through the bars –or possibly he was just using a flimsy pretext to lean into her without being too obvious. After a moment of thought which ended in a small hum, he turned his head back toward her.

"I could easily get any information you want from him with or without pain. The choice is, of course, yours."

She knew he deliberately pitched his voice low and tilted his head close enough so that his warm breath ghosted over her skin. She wasn't sure if it was some plan that Klaus had or if Maddox was doing this on his own, but she had no intention of ever having sex with him. Still, she didn't bother to try and hide her reaction when she turned her face up toward him, almost letting their lips brush. Yeah, it had been a while.

"I'm a big girl, Maddox. I don't need anyone to do my torturing for me."

She pushed him back slightly so that she could lean down to grab the bottle and cup, and then opened the door and started through. Turning back toward Maddox, she put a hand on his chest when he began to follow her.

"I need you to stay out here and put up some kind of a barrier. If things get out of hand, I don't want anyone to be able to come in or out of here."

When she began to pull away he grabbed her hand, holding it tightly against him, and waited until she made eye contact with him.

"I'll put up a barrier. However, if things 'get out of hand' I can incapacitate him. I won't leave you in there."

Good lord, if he was acting he definitely deserved some kind of award for it. She couldn't help but believe him, and she didn't bother to hide that when she softly said, "Thank you."

He let go of her hand and she softly closed the door. Shutting his presence out of her mind, she cross the small room and sat against a wall opposite Damon. While he was nowhere near as desiccated as Mikael had been, his eyes didn't quickly pop open as the original vampire's had. Instead, she could see him struggling to move his eyelids.

Softly, in a voice even her vampire hearing struggled to pick up, she heard him say, "Caroline."

"Hi, Damon. It's been a while."

Opening the bottle of blood she had brought with her, Caroline took a deep drink. The smell of the blood gave him enough motivation to finally open his eyes. For a long moment he stared at her, looking as if he were trying to make some connection that he was just missing. Caroline lifted the bottle and once again took a deep drink. She could practically  _hear_  the click in his brain right before he tried speaking again.

"You… vamp…"

Caroline gave a small huff of amusement and then replied, "A lot's changed since you were put down here."

She could see him struggle with his next question and, although she knew what he wanted to ask, she didn't make it easy on him. Instead, she took another drink from the bottle. Normally, she wouldn't drink this fast, but it was really about reminding him she had what he wanted most.

"How long…?"

He gave up halfway through the question, but she decided to answer him anyway. While a large part of her enjoyed seeing him struggle, she didn't have the time to wait for him to force out every word.

"It's been a little over four months now. We opened the tomb, no Katherine. We did get Pearl and Harper out, though. Gave the rest to the council. We still have more vampires roaming around then you'd think would want to be in a town this small. Oh, and there's a  _really_  old vampire coming to kill Elena for a ritual. How have things been for you?"

She finished off with her eyes wide in a parody of curiosity. For a good five seconds he genuinely seemed to be trying to process all she had said, but he soon gave up and closed his eyes. His hand, however, twitched a bit as if he were trying to reach out and he gave a croaking, "Thirsty."

Just to be extra irritating –lord knows he deserved that and worse—she gave a giggle before answering.

"Well of  _course_  you're thirsty, silly! You haven't had a drop to drink since you tried to kill me! However, you're going to have to promise to give me some answers before I can let you have anything."

At this he feebly nodded. Caroline poured a small amount into the cup she had brought with her and then made her way over to him. Delicately, she began feeding him sips until he was able to move his arms enough to almost grab the cup from her. Before he could do so, however, she moved away. When he whined she responded by tsking and shaking her head at him. She then made her way back to where she had been sitting before.

"Right now, Damon, I need you to answer my questions. The first question, did you kill Isobel Saltzman about three years ago?"

While she knew the answer, it would help establish how willing he was to actually share information. It would also help convince Elena that she needed to finally get around to talking to Alaric about Isobel. His voice, when he answered, was slightly stronger, though it still sounded rusty and pained.

"She asked me to turn her, so I did."

Caroline nodded her head and then pretended to think. She only had one question she was really here for, but if Damon figured that out, he would probably make it difficult to get any kind of an answer out of him. Though she doubted he'd think she'd come down all this way just to ask about a bird.

"The crow. How do you do that?"

For a moment he looked confused, but then his expression cleared and he gave a small smirk.

"You want me to be your Yoda? I can do that."

He shifted as though to get into more comfortable, but was unable to really change position. Giving up, he stared at the ceiling and gave a large sigh before continuing.

"You have to go with a crow or a raven. Something like that. They can recognize people probably about as good as we can. No use getting an animal that can only identify people by smell unless you go around smelling people all the time."

He paused as though expecting a laugh from her. Caroline, however, wasn't feeling amused. Right now, she only wanted to know how bad he had fucked this poor bird up. She quickly found out how long-lasting the fallout from his  _influence_  would be.

"You have to get them while they're real young, usually when they first get out of the nest. Then it's just a matter of getting into their heads like you would a sleeping human's. After a while, you become their world and, like with a human whose head you spend enough time in, you get a kind of mind link with them."

If Damon had noticed her look of disgust, he might have stopped. He wasn't looking at her, however, so he kept talking.

"Right now I'm not sure if it's the lack of blood or what, but I can't feel him. Is he still alive?"

At this Caroline rushed at him and grabbed his chin, fingers digging in and leaving bloody wounds.

"The bird is alive and well. However, like everything else you touch, you managed to fuck him up, didn't you?"

Her fingers tightened a little bit more and continued through clenched teeth, "Just like you fucked me up. I can never be who I was before you came into my life, and neither can he. I got stronger, though, better. I'll make sure he does as well. You, on the other hand? You are going to suffer for a good long while."

With that she stood up, walked over to collect her bottle and cup, and then crossed to the door. Damon called for her as she looked at Maddox through the bars of the small window, silently asking him to take off the spell. He was demanding that she let him out as she pulled the door closed and slid the bolt home to lock it. By the time she and Maddox were walking up the stairs, Damon was begging her to come back. It didn't feel like closure and it didn't bring her peace. However, she had the answer she had been looking for, and that would have to be enough.

She was silent as they left the house and even as they approached their cars. Before she could get into  _her_  car however, Maddox grabbed her lightly by the elbow. When she turned to look at him, his expression was almost innocent but there was a definite heat brewing just below the surface. As he began to speak, his hand slowly slid from her elbow toward her hand.

"Since it appears you've got the rest of the day free, you could come back to my place. We could… practice dancing."

Both his tone and his deliberate pause let her know  _exactly_  what he was suggesting. And she could do it. She could go back to his place with him and they could have potentially fantastic sex. Of course, the fact that he was human –even with the witchy advantage—also gave her pause. She had never had sex with a human while she was a vampire, and now was probably not a good time to start trying it out. Of course, there was also the fact that he was one of Klaus's pet witches. While she wouldn't get emotionally involved, that didn't mean she felt like letting someone into her bed –or getting into his bed—when it could all end up being part of some scheme.

"That's  _really_  not a good idea, Maddox. In the mood I'm in, I'm liable to do some damage."

She could tell by the way he licked his lips and let his eyes briefly dip down to hers that the suggestion of pain really didn't put him off in the least. When she pulled away, although he kept a light grip on her hand until the last possible second, he didn't try and stop her. As she drove off, she could still see him in the rearview mirror, standing just where she left him.

From then on, while he didn't bring it up again, he let her know in subtle ways that his hinted at offer still stood. When they practiced dancing each day after school for the pageant, it was there in his heated looks and low-pitched voice. Of course, Bonnie didn't miss any opportunity to tease her about it and of course Caroline then took to teasing Bonnie right back about how closely she and Jeremy have been working together.

"I'm only answering his questions about witches, vampires, werewolves, and hunters. There's  _nothing_  going on there."

The slight smile she tried to hide, however, let Caroline know that her friend was not totally immune to baby Gilbert's charms. And, bonus: this time around he couldn't cheat on her with a ghostly ex-flame! Not that Caroline was pushing for them to get together… too much. There might have been some subtle hinting and enabling, but nothing too obvious. She had refrained from trying to lock them in a closet together, though mostly because she was pretty sure Bonnie would do something witchy and embarrassing to her if she did.

They continued on like that –Maddox with his intense focus on her and Bonnie with the teasing—for the rest of the week. The Miss Mystic Falls pageant came and went and, while Caroline put on a good show of excitement and nervousness during the event and then surprise when she won, it was all a bit of a letdown. Maddox had turned up in a suit that was  _obviously_  high quality and tailored which she attributed to Klaus. She wouldn't put it past him to personally pick out clothes for his  _entourage_. Everything went perfectly and, with the exception of Elena not trying to back out and Stefan actually showing up and not trying to kill someone, almost exactly as it had before.

The one glaring difference was Kelly Donovan. Apparently, she had been back for three months and managed to  _not_  stir up a mess of trouble, but unfortunately she chose the pageant as the time to break that streak.

The first hint of trouble was when Caroline heard her making some snarky remark about how she didn't see how 'Lezzy' Forbes's daughter managed to beat out Elena. Seriously, what did that woman have against her? She wasn't even dating her son this time around!

The following week Caroline did her best to avoid spending any time with Maddox. It was one thing to flirt with Klaus's minion, another thing entirely to make him think anything was going to happen. Of course, he was either exceptionally dense or exceptionally determined, because he wouldn't stop texting her. Luckily, the calls finally stopped once he realized that she wasn't going to answer when it was him. Other than playing avoid-the-witch, the week was pretty boring. Boring enough, in fact, that Caroline started to feel restless.

Just when she was about to work herself up into a state, however, things picked up again on the curse front. Alaric pulled them into a classroom on the morning they were all supposed to be planning for the Founder's Day float. Apparently, Isobel had ambushed him at the Mystic Grill and demanded he set up a meeting with Elena. After Elena had come out and said that she really didn't have a choice except to meet her mother.

After the others left, Caroline turned to Bonnie and said, "It's kind of surprising."

At Bonnie's questioning look, she got up popped her head out the door, checking to make sure that Stefan hadn't hung back. When she was satisfied he was really gone, she closed the door and sat back down next to Bonnie.

"I've changed some pretty major things already. I even made sure that Katherine  _knew_  we were aware that she and Isobel are working together. And yet the same things are still happening, some of them even at the same time as before. I mean, it makes it pretty convenient to plan how to save people, but I still don't get it."

After a moment of thought, Bonnie replied, "Maybe it's the universe's way of trying to make sure things don't get too out of hand."

Caroline couldn't help but wonder if that would mean that the universe would make sure she couldn't save Bonnie. The thought was too painful to entertain, so she forcefully pushed it out of her mind. After all, she had more important things to think about, such as how they were going to handle this meeting with Isobel.

Later that afternoon she found herself sitting with Pearl at a table across the room from where Elena sat alone talking just loud enough for Stefan to hear her at the pool tables. They weren't there for long before Isobel showed up. She wasted very little time in letting Elena know she was aware of the three vampires in the room. Thankfully, this plan didn't call for any major element of surprise. When it became clear that Isobel wouldn't answer any questions and was only there to get the Gilbert device, Caroline walked to the table, followed closely by Pearl.

When they got to the mother and daughter pair, they both took the remaining two seats at the table. Isobel's voice had sounded so smug and condescending from where Caroline had been sitting and, looking at her now, she could see that smugness written all over her face. That, along with the pain and confusion she could practically feel radiating off Elena, really made her want to smack the woman in her face. She somehow resisted the urge.

"Even though I knew better, part of me was really hoping you  _actually_  wanted to see Elena. Now that I've completely given up on that delusion, however, we can get down to business. You won't be getting the Gilbert device."

When Isobel made as if to protest, Pearl buried the butter knife she had carried over with her in the other woman's leg.

"You won't be getting anything from us. Well, except some pretty intense pain if you make trouble in this town. There are three witches who would love practice their aneurism-inducing skills on you, so I wouldn't tempt fate."

Pearl removed the cutlery from Isobel's leg and set it on the table between them. Isobel didn't so much as spare her a glance, though Caroline didn't miss her slight wince.

"In fact, we have a small handful of powerful vampires who would  _also_  probably love to tear into you. If you want to prevent that, then I suggest you run back to Katherine and let her know I want to talk. I'm willing to do whatever I can to help ensure that, along with all of us, she gets to walk away from this scot free. However, I do need information from her."

After a moment of silence, Isobel raised her eyebrows at Caroline questioningly, to which she shrugged and gestured that the woman could leave. With an expression that barely concealed her anger, she got up and left with a resentful, "It was nice meeting you, Elena."

When it was just the three of them, Caroline reached out to give Elena's hand a comforting squeeze. Catching sight of the now bloodied butter knife, she snatched it up and hid it in her lap too fast for anyone to see.

"Yeah, no one needs to be using that now. We should probably just get rid of it."

Pearl gave a small amused huff and all three of them left the table. Elena, of course, chose to join Stefan and let him comfort her – the poor girl needed it. Pearl and Caroline chose to leave the Grill, parting ways as soon as they passed through the door. On the way home, Caroline tried to figure out what would happen next, and how similar it would be to what had happened before.

Even as Caroline was musing on what changes the universe would and would not allow, Katherine Pierce was driving in an SUV on her way toward Mystic Falls. She had relied on John and Isobel to do damage control for her, and they had failed.

"If you want something done right, you have to do it yourself."

Her current lover and key to getting the moonstone slept in the passenger seat beside her, unaware of what plans she had in store for him.


	14. It's All Fun and Games Until the Devil Calls

Being best friends with Caroline Forbes meant that you spent a _lot_ of time behind the scenes setting up for all the fun –as well as the boring—things that went on in town. That's how Bonnie found herself filling little fishbowls with water right alongside of Elena in preparation for the carnival.

"Okay, where is Caroline and why is she not helping us?"

While she could tell by Elena's voice that she was only half-serious, Bonnie still replied, "There's a shortage of prizes for the ring toss, the cards haven't arrived for bingo yet, and she's convinced that the balloon and dart game has been rigged."

At this both girls stopped what they were doing and just stared at each other for a second before both giggling. Caroline was _not_ a gracious loser, and last year she hadn't been able to pop enough balloons to get the prize she wanted and was convinced the game had been rigged. They hadn't heard the end of it for about a month.

Just as they got back to work, Bonnie glanced up in time to catch Caroline walking toward them with Maddox following closely on her heels. You had to hand it to Maddox; he had not let Caroline's refusal to sleep with him stop him from throwing himself into his duties as her personal gofer. Caroline had confessed to her that, while she felt bad at first, she wasn't going to refuse to benefit from something he so obviously wanted to do. Right now, however, Caroline didn't look like she was thinking about her new personal assistant.

"Just so the both of you know, the balloons were completely underinflated. I don't doubt they were last year as well."

While her tone was haughty, the wink she threw at them said she was well aware of how ridiculous her obsession with the game was. Apparently, something about being a vampire had let Caroline relax a bit and learn to not take herself so seriously. She seemed much happier now. In fact, she seemed a _lot_ happier than she had in a while, a far cry from the Caroline who had worked herself up over the Miss Mystic Falls pageant in order to keep from getting worked up over the upcoming ritual and all that entailed.

As Caroline went on to explain to Elena which booths still needed to be stocked with prizes, Bonnie caught sight of Carter at one of the booths over her friend's shoulder. He had not been subtle in his flirting when she and Elena had first approached him on one of Caroline's many missions for them. She had to admit it was _very_ nice to be the one noticed for a change. And it didn't hurt that he was very good looking and _very_ good at flirting. She was brought out of her musings by the realization that her friends were now silent. When her eyes shifted back to Caroline, her friend was facing away from her and staring at the young man who had just been occupying her mind.

Caroline's smile, when she turned back around, was excited and contagious. She leaned forward, resting her hands on the table holding the fish bowls.

"Do we have another contender for Miss Bennett's affections?"

Bonnie took a deep breath and opened her mouth, though she wasn't really sure what to say. However, she was spared having to say anything by Elena.

"His name is Carter, he works for the carnival, and he is very much into Bonnie. So, obviously, he has good taste."

The smile Elena turned on her was somewhere between proud and flirtatious. There were times she absolutely _loved_ her friends.

"Wait… _another_ contender?"

And there were times she wished they weren't so involved in her life. Elena's tone clearly demanded, and expected, more details. If Bonnie had any say in it, however, those details would not be forthcoming.

"Elena, have you noticed that your brother has turned into quite the handsome young man?"

Elena looked very confused and started to answer with, "Why would I…" and then Bonnie could see the instant that she got what Caroline was trying to say. Yeah, she definitely wished her friends weren't so involved in her life.

She couldn't tell if Elena was upset by the information or if she was just having problems processing it. Suddenly, her eyes got wide and her mouth dropped open for a second.

"If you start dating him, I want absolutely _no_ details. Ever. None."

And suddenly all the worry and anxiety left Bonnie and she couldn't help but give a small laugh in its absence.

"We're not… It's not… It may be nothing."

Caroline's not so subtle snort clearly showed she didn't think it was 'nothing'. Bonnie had asked her when her teasing about Jeremy had begun, if they had something from before but had gotten a vague non-answer. To be honest, she wasn't sure exactly how to take that. Did it mean that they were an _almost_ , or a short lived thing, or did it mean that they were, in Caroline-speak, _epic_?

Deciding to try her best to change the topic, Bonnie brought up something that had been worrying her a bit.

"Not to get you all worried about upcoming rituals, but do you think we'll be hearing from Katherine?"

Caroline opened her mouth to answer, but it was the guilty, "Um," coming from Elena that drew Bonnie's attention.

"I know I should have told you guys first thing today, but I just wanted us to have some normal time."

She could see Elena working up the courage to continue, but Caroline quickly interrupted her.

"Let me guess, your look-alike has already shown up and started causing trouble?"

She didn't seem surprised that Katherine had already made an appearance, nor did she seem at all put out that Elena hadn't said something sooner. Ignoring the fact that she was a bit put out _Caroline_ hadn't said something to _her_ , she instead decided to address two very important questions.

Turning to Elena, she held up her index finger and said, "One, what and," turning to Caroline, she held up her middle finger alongside it and said, "two, how did _you_ know?"

Elena was the first to answer with, "Katherine paid a visit to John and Stefan. And how _did_ you know?"

Caroline rolled her eyes at the question –Bonnie would have to remind her friend later that not all of them had lived through this before—but answered without a hint of the 'duh' that was in her expression showing through in her voice.

"My mom and I had a talk with John yesterday in the hospital to convince him to leave Mystic Falls, and he told us that Katherine was the one who put him there. Also, Mason Lockwood is in town, and he's the werewolf that Katherine was going to offer up to Klaus."

While Bonnie was well aware of the Lockwood connection to werewolves, Elena managed to catch on pretty quickly.

"Wait, if Mason _Lockwood_ is a werewolf, then…"

Caroline quickly interrupted with, "You're not wrong. However, maybe we should wait until we're somewhere a bit less out in the open to talk about everything?"

While the idea that they shouldn't talk about this stuff out where anyone could overhear them was a sound one, Bonnie knew it was just a way for Caroline to figure out how much she needed to tell Elena about their plans. Though, knowing Caroline, it wouldn't be very much. While part of her almost resented how removed from the grittier and more morally questionable aspects of everything they were keeping Elena, another part of her was all for it. After all, she wasn't so sure her friend would go along with the idea that people –even some she knew—might end up as cannon fodder as a result of all their plans.

Of course, Caroline was still upset that she had unthinkingly told Elena that they already had the moonstone. According to her, the fewer people who knew exactly what they did and didn't have, the better. The part of Bonnie that still felt guilty that they had kept Caroline out of the loop when they first found out about vampires wondered if they had the right to keep information from people. However, Caroline had made a compelling case for it being safer for everyone that way.

Two days later, as she and Caroline were waiting outside the old Lockwood cellar where they had been camped out all night to make sure no one accidentally freed Mason, she had to question why she was so okay with morally questionable actions for the sake of the supposed greater good. She also found herself questioning when skipping school on a Monday to recruit a werewolf to play the part of a ritual sacrifice had become a part of their lives.

Her existential crisis was prematurely interrupted when Caroline suddenly perked up. Grabbing the extra bottle of water they had brought with them, she followed her friend down the steps toward the cellar door. Just as they reached the door, it opened and they were greeted by the sight of a very surprised-looking Mason. Caroline wasted no time in getting right to the point.

"Hi, Mason. We seriously need to talk."

She could see him concoct and reject various different excuses for why he was there. Caroline had said they had to play it hard with him, though, so Bonnie stopped him before he could try one of those excuses out on them.

"Let's skip the part where you try and pretend that you're not a werewolf, she's not a vampire, and I'm not a witch. We don't have time for games."

He appeared to still be gearing up to try and deny everything for a few seconds, but then his body seemed to relax all at once. A patronizing smirk formed on his face and his tone made Bonnie want to smack him when he answered.

"Did you girls have a bit too much to drink, or have you been reading too many trashy paranormal romances?"

Apparently, his voice had the same effect on Caroline because the next thing Bonnie knew, her friend had Mason held up against the wall with the toes of his chucks barely scrapping the floor. Her voice, when she spoke, was pure Caroline-grade mean girl.

"This is more of a supernatural horror, wolf-boy. In it, our idiotic werewolf protagonist has found himself playing the fool for a very cunning vampire who plans to offer him up as a sacrifice. Luckily for him, a friendly witch and vampire duo come along to save the day. Wanna know how it ends?"

It didn't take much more to convince Mason that it was in his best interests to work with them. He seemed a bit less than enthused with the dying part, but when Caroline brought up the fact that, if he should run, they could simply trigger either his brother or nephew and use them, he only gave her a bitter smile and said he'd do it.

" _Friendly_ witch and vampire duo?"

For a second, Bonnie could see a bit of guilt creep across her friend's face before she gave him a blank look.

"For varying definitions of friendly. Either way, you stick around and we'll make sure you make it through all this.  And don't try convincing Tyler or his dad to leave, I've got them both compelled to stay in town no matter what."

Mason simply nodded his understanding and they all cleared out of the cellar. As he was getting into his black SUV, however, Caroline called out his name. When he turned to acknowledge her, she simply said, "Tell Katherine that I'm still waiting to hear from her. Also, you should probably warn Tyler about his risk of going furry once a month."

He gave a huff of what could almost be called amusement before he got completely into the vehicle and closed the door behind him. Watching him drive away, Bonnie asked in a casual tone, "When exactly did you compel Tyler and the Mayor not to leave town?"

Turning a bright smile on her, Caroline replied, "Shortly after the next time I see them!"

It took a moment for it to sink in that Caroline had pulled that idea out of nowhere while they were talking to Mason. Turning to follow her to her new car –her dad's guilt gift, she had explained— Bonnie asked if she thought Katherine would finally show up.

"If she does, she does. If not, well we don't really need her, now do we?"

And it was true. In the end, finding and talking to Katherine was just another way to explain away Caroline knowing far more than she really should. It would make things a touch more convenient, but it wasn't all that necessary. Though Bonnie got the feeling that Caroline really wanted to save her. Not because she cared about Katherine, but just to prove she could. Maybe to make up for the fact that she couldn't save other people. God, but they were too young for this shit.

That Friday, as she sat in the Grill with Caroline, Ben, and Maddox –he seemed to be developing some _serious_ stalker tendencies with Caroline— having lunch, Bonnie could almost forget that their world had changed so much. They had managed to go three whole days without mentioning anything supernatural beyond Caroline asking her how training with her Grams was going. It felt… normal.

She was drawn out of her musings when she caught sight of Elena walking in through the door. When she saw her look toward the table everyone was sitting at, she quickly raised her hand to catch the other girl's attention. There was a slight pause where it looked as if Elena didn't recognize them, but the moment was quickly gone, and everyone was making room for her at the table.

With Elena's arrival, however, talk quickly turned to the supernatural and what they needed to do. For once, Elena was the one who seemed to be instigating the conversation. As Bonnie was reassuring her that the spell to bring her back would work she caught Caroline checking her phone from the corner of her eye. For a moment, her face went completely blank, and then smoothed over into what Bonnie had once heard her refer to as her 'boring dinner smile'. When Bonnie was done explaining the spell again, that smile turned into a sneer, and Caroline focused her full attention on Elena.

"You know, the act is really good considering how you probably haven't spent much time around Elena. I'm impressed, actually."

There was absolute silence from everyone around the table as Caroline and Elena –no, Katherine, apparently—stared each other down. And then Katherine leaned back in her chair, her body posture and expression changing completely. Suddenly, regardless of the fact that nothing had really changed, Bonnie was looking at a completely different person.

"As am I, Blondie. It took both Stefan and John a bit longer to figure out I wasn't their boring little Elena. What gave it away?"

Caroline held up her phone, showing a text she'd just received from Elena – it showed her and Stefan holding a bowl of popcorn. Bonnie remembered that Elena had said that she wouldn't be having lunch with them because she wanted some Stefan time. While it hadn't seemed unusual for her friend to change plans and meet them anyway, Bonnie still felt like kicking herself for not being suspicious.

Katherine rolled her eyes at the picture, turning her head to stare off to the side as if she were bored with the whole situation. Clearly, she wasn't overly upset at being found out. Moving only her eyes, she looked at Caroline once again.

"You wanted to talk to me, Caroline?" Relaxing further back into her seat, she spread her hands out in front of her as if to say "so talk".

Caroline settled back into her seat, mirroring Katherine's pose, and told her what they needed and what they were willing to do for her. Katherine, for her part, looked understandably unimpressed. And, going by her tone of voice, she had very little faith in Caroline's abilities.

"You think I'm going to bet my life on some baby vampire's ability to negotiate with _Klaus_?"

There was a time when the Caroline that Bonnie knew would have bristled at the dismissive tone; she didn't take kindly to anyone doubting her. It was possible that Caroline still felt that way but, if so, she had learned to hide it much better. Her expression and voice were calm and slightly condescending when she spoke.

"What I _think_ is that you don't have much of a choice. We have the doppelgänger, we have a willing vampire, and, thanks to you, we have a willing werewolf. We've also got a much better idea of where the moonstone is than you do. Not only that, but you're effectively trapped in this town."

At this, Katherine looked very interested. She quickly covered that with an exaggerated pout and a patronizing head-tilt.

"Did your little witchy friends put some kind of spell on me?"

Bonnie could almost _hear_ the "seriously" in Caroline's expression at that.

"No, but if you try to leave Mystic Falls, I have no doubt that Klaus will probably snap you up about three seconds before you can cross the town line."

Caroline's smile was almost sympathetic as she caught Katherine's look of surprise.

"I'm going to assume that John and Isobel never told you that Klaus already knows about Elena, otherwise you'd have figured out on your own that he's already here."

For a moment, there was a crack in Katherine's expression, and Bonnie could clearly see her flight or fight response start to kick in. Caroline was right there, however, reaching forward to hold onto one of her hands.

"I have a safe place you can go to that no other vampire would be willing to enter. Klaus won't waste his time trying to get to you, at least not right away. I can use that time to try and negotiate for your freedom. All you have to do is tell us everything you know."

It didn't sit well with Bonnie that they had to negotiate for a pardon –it was the word Caroline had originally used when talking about the Katherine situation—when all Katherine had wanted to do was to survive. However, the situation was what it was, and no amount of outrage was going to change it. She could practically hear that last sentence in Caroline's voice.

Katherine stared at Caroline for a long moment, before abruptly standing up. She gave a brisk, "I'll call you," and then quickly walked out of the Grill, leaving the table silent behind her.

Caroline took a deep breath and then turned back to her food. Before she could take a bite, however, Maddox spoke.

"What if you can't convince Klaus to spare her?"

Bonnie could see the weight of that possibility settle over Caroline and when she looked at Maddox, his expression was as close to cold as she'd ever seen him direct toward Caroline.

"Well, then he doesn't spare her. I still have to try."

With a tilt of his head, he asked, "But why?"

The look Caroline turned on him was the same that she had turned on Grams when she'd asked why she risked continuing to help Ben. The look seemed to ask how the person couldn't see the obvious. Her answer to Maddox was even similar to the one she had given then.

"Because it feels like the right thing, and that's the kind of person I'm choosing to be."

After that the conversation turned back to all the normal things they had been discussing before Katherine's arrival. The mood, however, was a little more somber. Over the next week, Caroline's more relaxed demeanor seemed to take a hit. Even Katherine taking their deal and telling her everything she knew didn't seem to help. Perhaps part of it was that she was regretting telling Katherine about the fact that she had time traveled.

When Caroline had told her _that_ , she thought for a second that her friend had lost her mind. Listening to her reasons however –needing someone who was used to thinking five steps ahead _and_ knew Klaus— it made sense. It still didn't feel right, though, especially when Caroline told her that they couldn't actually trust Katherine to do anything beyond saving her own skin. They hadn't talked about it anymore, and Caroline appeared to be trying to drown herself in normal life once again.

Normal life now consisted them hanging out with Ben and Maddox, watching movies, and talking about what they were going to wear to the Masquerade Ball –Caroline looking far too amused that Maddox had invited himself along as her date even as she turned him down. They were in the middle of a teasing argument over the date that wasn't going to happen when Bonnie saw Ben take out his phone and glance at it. She saw his face go blank, but didn't think anything of it as he stood up and walked into the kitchen, turning instead back to the others.

Caroline caught sight of him as well and called out, "Hey, Ben, could you grab me a water?"

Bonnie saw the confusion on her face when Ben didn't answer, and then something like dread follow quickly. Looking back into the kitchen, she saw him grab something from one of the drawers and turn back toward them.

He raised the stake he now had in his hand to his chest as he said in a dull and toneless voice, "Someone's gotten a bit cocky and needs a lesson."

She knew she had to do something to stop this, but she was far too shocked to even think, let alone act. Thankfully, Caroline didn't seem to similarly affected. Faster than Bonnie could blink, she was standing right in front of Ben, hands on the stake and struggling to pull it away from him.

"Bonnie, get rid of the stake!"

For a second every spell and bit of magic her Grams had worked on with her disappeared from her memory. When Caroline screamed her name again, though, everything came rushing back to her. A quick burst of magic, a push of her will, and the stake was disintegrating in their hands. Ben wasted no time in pushing Caroline away from him and she went flying back into the kitchen bar with enough force that Bonnie was pretty sure it would have to be replaced. She saw Caroline suddenly scrabbling around her, but her attention was caught by movement from Ben.

He walked over to the window and threw open the heavy curtains. His skin quickly turned red and blistering in the sun. Another push with her magic and Ben was flying back away from the window and the curtains were once again closed. A split second after that, Caroline was straddling his chest and snapping his neck. Her head bowed, she took a deep breath and then gave a quick nod, seemingly having come to a decision. She slipped Ben's ring back on his finger –and that explained what she had been searching for—and then strode determinedly to where Maddox was still seated in his chair.

Caroline had him by the throat and pushed so far over the back of the couch that he his body had bowed up into hers where it was poised over him. Her face was nearly touching his and Bonnie could almost feel her anger from where she had moved to sit against the couch next to where Ben was laying.

"I don't care how you do it, puppet boy, but you need to get hold of your master and find out what I need to do to stop this." 

She pushed off of him, roughly jerking his head to the side as she did. She then stomped over to Ben, lifted his upper body and, sitting down, laid his head in her lap. At Bonnie's questioning look she said, "If he comes to, I'll have to snap his neck again because I don't think he's going to stop."

She turned just in time to see Maddox lifting his hips to take his phone out of his back pocket. What she wished she hadn't seen was very obvious erection he had. As she turned away in disgust, she heard his phone chime.

"He says you should answer your phone."

Before she could ask Maddox how he could pass on a message from Klaus without actually contacting him, there was a ring from the phone on the coffee table. Caroline's phone.

"Bonnie…"

She was already getting to her feet to answer Caroline's phone when she replied, "Yeah."

The number on the display was unfamiliar, and there was no name to go with it. Bonnie answered the phone, but before she could say anything, a very amused British voice began speaking.

"Bonnie, sweetheart, be a good little witch and put me on speakerphone."

She could see Caroline take a sharp breath in and seem to brace herself. As she sat down next to her friend, close enough to feel the slight buzz of magic from the piece of her soul in the other girl, she prepared for the worst. Even though it was only a phone and not actually Klaus in the room, she still didn't feel comfortable looking at it. Instead, she kept her eyes on Caroline.

"I have to say, Caroline, I am impressed by how quickly you managed to catch on to what was happening and subdue our dear Ben."

Caroline's eyes closed, and she slowly shook her head, letting out a rueful laugh.

"Let me guess, you have your pet's house wired for video?"

Bonnie could feel her eyes widen and she stared at her friend in shock. _What_ was she thinking? Klaus, however, seemed more… amused by her response than offended. When Caroline caught Bonnie's expression, she gave an apologetic shrug. Apparently, she had no idea what she was thinking either.

"How do I get him to stop?"

Caroline's voice was tired and almost pleading; Klaus's voice, when he responded was very calm and sent a chill down Bonnie's spine.

"Do you know why Benjamin was trying to end his life?"

The question threw Bonnie for a loop, though Caroline seemed to almost have been expecting it.

"I did something you didn't like. Going by what Ben said, you think I've gotten arrogant and it's offended you somehow. What did I do, and how can I get you to stop Ben from killing himself?"

There was no trace of mean-girl, no trace of the confident vampire who _knew_ exactly how to get everything done, but there was no begging in her tone, either.

"Sweet Caroline," Bonnie could see her jaw twitch at the hated nickname. "You've been making promises in my name, and to someone who I most definitely want dead. You've also been making assumptions about what I will and will not _waste_ my time on."

She could practically _feel_ Caroline's muscles tighten, and she could see a shadow of dark veins briefly appear around her friend's eyes. _Please, lord, don't let her piss him off!_

"Your little puppet wasn't very good at giving you the whole story. I only promised Katherine that I would _try_ to convince you to let her free. And while I _did_ assume you wouldn't waste your time trying to get her out of a tomb she can't escape from, I only told her what I needed to in order to get her to cooperate."

There was a moment of silence in which Bonnie seriously began to fear for all of their lives, and then Klaus's voice came through as cheerful as before.

"Fair enough, love. I'll make sure to have a talk with Maddox about how detailed his stories should be, and you keep an eye out for my moonstone. We'll talk about what deals I might be willing to make once you find it."

She couldn't tell from the look on Maddox's face if he was afraid of this upcoming 'talk' or excited over it. To be honest, she really didn't want to think about it.

"Maddox, when Benjamin comes too, make sure he knows that he did a good job of getting the message across. And, Caroline? Make sure you don't lose this number. I do _not_ enjoy being ignored."

Finally, there was the end of call beep, and then silence. There was nothing left for the three of them to do except wait for Ben to come to. That, and think about what, if anything, today changed.


	15. Hey Brother, Do You Still Believe?

Bonnie woke up to the insistent ring of her cell phone. The ringtone made it clear that it was Caroline on the other end. As she entertained the idea of simply not answering, the warmth of a naked body behind her and the lack of her own clothing slowly began to register. Memories from last night had slowly begun to roll through her mind when Jeremy wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her closer to him.

"It's Caroline. You know she's just going to keep calling until you finally answer."

Bonnie turned her head slightly toward him and asked in slight confusion, "How do  _you_  know that it's Caroline?"

He gave a small huff of laughter and the feel of his warm breath on the back of her neck had her biting her lip and pushing back into him slightly. He tightened his hold on her and hummed a bit, smiling against the back of her neck.

"It's Tik Tok. Two weeks ago, she snagged my phone and changed her ringtone. I haven't been able to get that song out of my head since."

The phone had stopped ringing by then, and Bonnie had the small hope that Caroline had just given up. It might have been slightly selfish, but she was still a bit shaken up from last night. She and Ben were far from close –he was a bit of a douche, to be honest—but he was someone Caroline had been helping. One minute everything was perfectly fine, and the next he was trying to kill himself right in front of them. It had really driven home that, if things went wrong, any of them could die.

As if to draw her from her morbid thoughts, Jeremy began kissing the back of her neck, occasionally nipping at her skin lightly. Just as she moved to turn in his arms, her phone started ringing again. With a groan, she struggled to reach her phone on the floor by the side of the bed with Jeremy holding her hip to keep her from falling, laughing the whole time. She quickly shushed him before she answered the phone. Before she could even get out a hello, Caroline was already talking.

"Oh my god, Bonnie, I was getting worried. I know it was crazy and scary last night, and I just wanted to make sure you weren't completely freaked out. Also, there's a thing I need you to help with, but that totally wasn't why I was calling. So, are you okay?"

If it had been anyone else, she would have thought that Caroline was lying and really  _was_  only calling because she was going to need her. Caroline could come off as extremely self-centered, but she had a tendency to put her friends first. Especially since the whole time travel thing. However, it was easier to focus on what she might need then to talk about last night.

"What do you need me to do?"

At the question, Jeremy let out a groan that Bonnie quickly tried to silence. She didn't manage to do so in time, however, and Caroline heard it. Damn vampire hearing.

"Who was that? Was that…?"

She could practically  _hear_  the grin that was probably forming on her friend's face. Bracing herself for teasing, she let out a warning, "Caroline…"

"No, you know what? Yesterday  _was_  really scary and wild. You need time to center yourself and forget the freakiness for a while. I can take care of everything,  _you_  just take time for yourself, okay?"

Before Bonnie could answer her, Caroline had hung up. With a huff, she threw herself back on the bed and stared at the ceiling.

"Well, Caroline knows where I am and probably has a good idea of what I did."

She could feel Jeremy tense up next to her and, when she looked at him, his expression was almost hurt.

"Is this the part where you tell me that this was a mistake?"

Reaching up, she pulled him down by the back of his neck until his forehead was resting against hers. Staring into his eyes, wanting to make sure there was no misunderstanding, she smiled.

"This is the part where you tell me that you have a spare tooth brush because our morning breath right now is no joke."

Later that afternoon –because, no matter how much Caroline insisted that she should take the whole day, she couldn't go without knowing what they needed her for—Bonnie met Caroline at Elena's house. She did her best to ignore the irrational bit of jealousy she felt when Caroline introduced Lucy, the witch Katherine had put her in touch with when she decided to replace her –"Not replace! You just needed some rest, Bon."

Because the universe loves a coincidence, the new witch was a Bennett witch as well. Granted, it was probably less of the universe loving a coincidence and more Katherine wanting a powerful witch. Apparently, Caroline wasn't joking when she said Bonnie's line carried a lot of power.

Caroline explained that, since they knew Elena was going to be kidnapped –Caroline didn't mention to everyone else that she had a very good idea of  _when_  she was going to be kidnapped—they needed to have something in place so they could find her. She then went on to explain that, if they only prevented the kidnapping, then the people who were responsible would just keep trying. Elena seemed surprisingly okay with being bait yet again, and even said she was willing to not try and fight her abductors or try and escape.

"I trust Caroline's ability to make a good plan, and I trust you guys to ride to my rescue."

By the time the tracking spell was completed and tested, Bonnie was feeling a lot less antagonistic toward Lucy. It helped that the woman was friendly and open and didn't judge Bonnie for being friends with vampires. She could admit she was still bitter over her mother's disgust at her friendship with Caroline and Stefan. When Lucy left, it was with their promise to contact her only if they  _absolutely_  needed her. As much as she didn't judge Bonnie for her involvement with vampires, she seemed ready to step back from them herself.

Bonnie and Caroline then made at stop at Pearl's home. While she wasn't trying to recruit muscle, she did want other people to know what was going on in case they needed back up.

"Or possibly a rescue squad for the rescue squad," Caroline had said with an embarrassed smile.

Anna had tried to convince Caroline that she should go with them. Her mother, of course, had forbidden it and the two had gotten into an argument. In order to keep the peace, Harper had volunteered to go, which seemed acceptable to both women.

About a week later, to no one's surprise, Elena was taken. Stefan, in spite of his instinct to step in, watched from a distance as Elena was carried away from the Masquerade Ball and into the night. He then sent Caroline a text, which she had to hide from Maddox who was displaying his interest more overtly than ever since he found out she was aware of his connection to Klaus. Then, also in spite of Stefan's instincts, they waited until morning to go after Elena.

Caroline, Stefan, and Harper drove off with only Caroline aware of who exactly they were going to run into and end up fighting. When she had asked Caroline why they were being so secretive, her friend had explained that they didn't know who Klaus could have compelled. Apparently, she wanted to make sure Klaus didn't know his brother was involved until she had already dealt with the situation. It seemed a bit risky, but Bonnie could understand her reasoning.

She watched them drive off, half convinced that she should be going with them. A couple of minutes later, as she was about to leave for school, she got a text from Caroline telling her to stop worrying and that she needed her there to stop their friends from trying to save her too soon. The texts kept coming, Caroline seeming to know she needed the contact, until finally she received one last one telling her that they were almost there.

As the trio was nearing the abandoned house to which the tracking spell was leading them, Elijah was making the acquaintance of Elena Gilbert. He thought he had been prepared when Rose Marie told him there was another doppelgänger. Seeing her, however, was both Tatia and Katerina all over again. His treacherous heart stuttered in his chest, though he hid his reaction well. He told himself he was only proving to himself that Katerina had fooled Rose Marie into believing she was someone new when he leaned in far too close. However, when he inhaled her scent, he couldn't deny the truth. She was human.

Thoughts of his brother, the damnable ritual he would use her for, and memories of the last human doppelgänger flooded his mind. Those thoughts also reminded him of the other occupants in the room. He had given Rose Marie his word that he would pardon her –her only crime was loyalty, after all—but he had never made any promises about Trevor. It was perhaps a cruel thing to do, but a thousand years had left him with a rather large streak of cruelty.

He was leaving a corpse and a sobbing vampire behind, doppelgänger in tow, when he heard the door he had originally entered slam against the wall. When he looked toward Rose Marie, the confusion was obvious on her face as she shook her head. The girl, however, looked relieved. That was unexpected. She had been very cooperative and didn't seem inclined to resist his directions.

"Who's here, sweetheart?"

She was obviously contemplating refusing to give him an answer, but ultimately seemed to change her mind.

"It's probably my friends here to rescue me."

At that, he quickly ushered both the girl and Rose Marie toward the door. Perhaps he could get them out of the way while he took care of these  _friends_. As they neared the door, however, he felt the wind from a body speeding past him. Apparently, he wasn't going to be able to get the girl clear from the fight.

Pushing her toward Rose Marie, he waited. It wasn't long until he heard the passage of another body. They were playing games, trying to keep him on edge. He did admire the tactic, though he doubted it would do them any good. A third pass and he felt the brush of a hand across the back of his neck. He felt anger pulse through him at the arrogance of these  _children_.

"Beware the Jabberwock!"

The voice that came from at least a floor up, though quiet, was obviously that of a young man too old for children's rhymes. Almost on the tail of it came another, more stoic male voice –this time from down a hallway beside the staircase—with the equally frivolous reply of, "The jaws that bite."

Directly after, he heard the snap of teeth behind him. When he turned he caught sight of a blur of yellow and the subtle scent of perfume. At least two males and a female, then.

From the room they had been keeping the girl in he heard the first male voice call out, somewhat loudly, "The claws that catch."

There was a burning line of pain down one of his cheeks. Reaching up a hand to touch it, he came back with fingers lightly spackled in blood. When he glanced back up, both Rose Marie and the girl were gone.

"Enough!"

He was finished wasting his time.

"I understand you wish to help the girl. I commend you on your loyalty. However, you cannot defeat me."

As he was speaking, he grabbed up a coat rack and began to dismantle it. Breaking off the hooks, he decided that none of the doppelgänger's friends would make it out of this fight.

"Bring the girl to me, and your death with be quick."

Having finished his speech with his back to the staircase, he broke off the end of the coat rack with a flourish. If they were  _lucky_ , he would make it quick.

"I'm thinking no."

Slowly, he turned around and looked up to the stop of the stairs. For a second, he could have almost been looking at his dear sister, full of defiance at the unfairness of her brother's actions. The moment was over quickly and, beyond the superficiality of hair color, he could see the vampire before him had very little in common with his sister. She was standing in full confidence, appearing ready to fight, though with her hands behind her back.

"Sweetheart, no is not an option."

He sped up the stairs but a blinding pain brought him up short and caused him to drop his weapon. Somehow, the little brat had thrown vervain at him! Even as he was recovering, he could feel her speed past him. He reached a hand out for her, but the pain rendered him too slow to catch her.

When he turned back down the stairs, a young black vampire stood alone at the bottom and close to the door. In his hand, he held some sort of gun. As Elijah deliberately walked down the stairs, he shot at him repeatedly. Though Elijah could feel the slight sting, it did not slow him. Wooden bullets then. The doppelgänger's friends knew that there would be vampires, but obviously were not expecting anything beyond that.

As he neared the young vampire, he could see no change in his face. A fearless fighter; it would almost be a shame to kill him. Before he could perform the deed, however, he was tackled from the side. Recovering first, he got to his feet and took a good look at the second male vampire. This one was blond and, unlike his companion, wore an expression of unmistakable fear, but there was determination there as well.

From behind him, he felt someone grab hold of a large section of his hair and pull. He also heard a small grunt, which was enough to let him know where his new attacker's head was approximately located. Turning quickly, sacrificing a bit of his hair, he grabbed at where their neck should be, only to find empty space. He reacted too slowly to block the young woman pushing up from her crouched position. Even as he felt the wooden section of coat rack -the very one  _he_  had broken—drive up into his heart, he couldn't help but be impressed that she had anticipated his skill level and used it against him.

His vision began to go dark around the edges and the last thing he felt was her hair, so like Rebekah's, beneath his hands. As he slipped into a temporary death, he allowed himself to pretend he was holding his sister.

He was unsure how long his death lasted, but it was long enough for them to move his body, apparently. He could feel soft furniture beneath his back, too firm and narrow to be a bed. Just as he was about to move, he became aware of the sound of movement and voices. Listening carefully, he could hear two people in the room with him, though no others on the premises.

Deciding to play dead for a little while longer, he took further stock of himself. Not only had they moved him, but they had also removed the makeshift stake from his chest. The wooden bullets that had been fired at him were still lodged in his body, unsurprisingly. Turning his attention outward, he tried to determine what his would-be killers were planning and, although he did not move, he came fully alert at the sound of his brother's voice. He had not heard it in nearly a century.

"Caroline, love, I'm not sure how comfortable I am with the thought of you taking off on these potentially dangerous missions without informing me. What if my doppelgänger had been injured or lost?"

The feminine laugh that followed was neither cowed nor malicious.

"I had it on good authority that the people who were out to take Elena didn't want her harmed. As for losing her, it was impossible. We put a magic Lojack on her so we could track her no matter where she went."

The voice sounded young and relatively untroubled. He could only assume she was the blonde vampire who had driven the stake through his heart. Given how little deference she seemed to be paying to Klaus, Elijah could only surmise that she had not been working for him for very long.

"This Good Authority of whom you speak, would it also be the source of the witchy feeling my  _puppet_  tells me you give off?"

Both Klaus's tone and the rueful laugh that came from Caroline led him to conclude that they were sharing some sort of inside joke. What truly caught his attention, however, was the talk of a 'witchy feeling' and what it could mean.

"It's all coming from a dead witch who had a lot of information to pass on to me. As for the feeling I'm apparently giving off… Well, a girl's gotta have  _some_  secrets."

There was suspicion coming through clear in Klaus's voice when he asked, "And why would a dead witch be so invested in this curse being broken?"

Elijah found himself even more interested in the conversation. Exactly how much  _had_  this vampire been helping his brother and did she know about the real curse, or did she believe that she was helping to break the sun and moon curse?

"When we start negotiating I'll start telling you the hows and whys. For now, though, there is a large bloodstain on the floor that I don't want to clean up, so I have an abandoned house to burn down. Is there anything else you want to talk about?"

There was a moment of tense silence with which Elijah was very familiar. It was in that long stretch of time that Klaus often teetered between amusement and fury. Given the lack of any detectable movement in the room, he could only assume the other occupants were aware of the potential danger she had just placed herself in. With a huff of laughter from his brother, the moment was over.

"One day, Caroline, I will know all of your secrets."

There was the sound of the call ending and then nothing. Apparently, Caroline was not one to let a silence linger, however, and she let out in a singsong voice, "Creepy."

Her companion seemed less inclined to make light of the situation.

"You seem to like living on the edge."

Caroline didn't pretend not to understand. When Elijah slightly opened his eyes, he found them standing on either side of the chair that had been left upright. He could see her in profile with her hands splayed and a serious expression on her face. The other vampire wore an equally serious expression, though there was also worry in his.

"You have to play to your audience, Harper. He's not a fan of things that bore him."

She seemed to consider the matter dropped as she began to rifle through a pile of belongings in the chair between them. She straightened back up with a wallet –it appeared to be his—in her hand. Opening it up, she started pulling out the cards. She then looked up at Harper with a raised eyebrow and said "Elijah Smith. Yeah, because that's totally not a fake name."

With a neutral expression, her companion replied, "I don't see  _why_  Elijah couldn't actually be his name."

For a moment, they both simply stared at each other while Elijah began to wonder if there was something wrong with Harper. Perhaps he had been incredibly slow as a human. A peel of laughter from Caroline interrupted his thoughts.

"Oh my god, you're cracking jokes now! I guess you're  _finally_  recovering from nearly a hundred and fifty years of desiccation. They grow up so fast."

She said the last with an exaggerated sniff as she looked back down at the cards she was holding. Harper continued to look at her blankly for a moment before a tentative smile ghosted his face and he began to rifle through the belongings as well.

Going by Caroline's comment on Harper's desiccation, Elijah could only assume that he was one of the vampires that had been locked in the tomb. This lent credence to Rose Marie's news that Katerina was not in said tomb. Ignoring the pang in his chest at the thought of the young woman he had once known, Elijah quickly rose from the couch and, before either of the other vampires even knew he had moved, placed himself behind Caroline.

He quickly wrapped one hand around her throat and pulled her up until she was teetering on her toes. Her gasp alerted Harper to the fact that something was wrong, and he quickly looked over at them. He dropped the papers in his hand and his body tensed as if to rush the miniscule distance at them. Even as Elijah placed his hand on Caroline's shoulder in preparation to move her out of reach, her hand was up and braced against the other man's chest as she let out a quick, "Harper."

For a moment everyone froze. Taking a deep breath, Caroline began to speak in a voice that was only slightly shaky.

"Given that Rose doesn't know us and didn't know we were coming, can we safely assume that any deal she made with you is still valid?"

Elijah paused to contemplate her words, one hand still loosely around her throat while the middle finger of the hand he had place on her shoulder unconsciously tapping the rhythm of her slightly elevated heartbeat against her collarbone.

"If Rose Marie does not know you, then why should you concern yourself with her wellbeing?"

Still not moving the hand she had up in order to halt Harper, Caroline quickly replied, "She's a friend of a friend and  _that_  friend would be upset if I messed things up for Rose."

Given how quickly she was responding and how relatively calm she was remaining, Elijah began to wonder if she had planned all of this. In the end, Rose Marie's life was of little concern to him and his need for retribution had been satisfied with Trevor's death.

"She delivered the girl as promised and I am a man of my word. The deal with her still stands."

Elijah listened with interest as Caroline told Harper to go back home and make sure Rose received word that she was in the clear. Her voice was firm when she repeated that he should go home and Harper finally conceded. Elijah could feel her relax subtly under his hands. He had to wonder if she thought she could better influence him if they were alone, or if she was simply relieved that her companion had made it out safely. Her next words left him with the impression that it was the latter.

"In the interest of full disclosure, he's probably going to call our friends as soon as he's out of earshot."

Listening closely, he could hear Harper already on the phone with someone telling them that Caroline was in danger.

As he stepped away from her, he replied dryly, "Not  _quite_  out of earshot, I'm afraid."

He could see her straining to hear before rolling her eyes.

"Seeing as how  _I_  can't hear him, I'm thinking he's not aware of your freakishly acute hearing."

He could begin to see why his brother found her so amusing. At the thought of Klaus, his mood once again turned darker. He needed to find out exactly how much his brother had been telling this girl and how close they were. Perhaps she could be used to some sort of advantage or as a weapon.

"You didn't seem particularly surprised that I was not as dead as one would expect after having a stake driven through my heart."

At this, he threw her a pointed look; he did hate when his shirts were ruined. Ignoring the look, she answered his question.

"I was told that you would be able to recover from being staked. I didn't know it would be that quickly, though, or I would have had Harper gone by now."

She definitely had his attention now. Had his brother known not only that he was in the area, but also that he was close to being in possession of the doppelgänger? There was, of course, only one way of being close to sure of that.

"Klaus?"

For a second she looked confused, as if the idea of his brother being her source of information had not even crossed her mind. Perhaps, then, it was this dead witch she had spoken of with Klaus.

"No. He didn't even know that Elena was going to be taken, let alone that she was going to be handed over to you. If he had known, he would have wanted to send some of his people and I couldn't have controlled the situation."

At his raised eyebrow, her back straightened and her expression became very determined. Once again, he could almost see Rebekah in her. Perhaps  _that_  was the true reason his brother had her around.

"I've got a plan in place where Klaus gets everything he wants while all of my friends get to live. We're close to having everything we need for the ritual, but I've been told that what you're here to do could mess that up. I'm here to try and convince you to not get in the way of breaking the curse."

He couldn't help the quiet chuckle that escaped him before he mused, "You wish to negotiate with both Klaus and myself. Such ambition."

She did not seem deterred by his words and so, casually lowering himself to the couch they had laid him on, he lapsed into silence as she watched him calmly. It would be easy enough to sit back and let them do all the work of gathering everything for the ritual –there was no doubt that it was, in fact, what Klaus was doing. Breaking the curse was part of his plan as well, so he did not even have to work around the truth if he agreed to go along with her. Working with them would also have the added benefit of putting him in place to kill Klaus when the time came.

The ringing of a phone interrupted his thoughts. He watched as Caroline took her cell from her pocket and glanced at the screen before back to him.

"It's my friend Bonnie. She's going to want to know if I'm okay or if she should let the others try and save me from you. What should I tell her?"

She was clearly asking him if he was going to be standing in her way or not. Gracefully rising to his feet he crossed back over to her, not bothering to hide is slight amusement when she was uncomfortable with his proximity.

Lightly touching the phone she still held at waist height, he replied, "Tell your friend that all is well and you shall be returning home shortly."

When she continued to stare at him without moving to answer the ringing, he added, "I give you my word that I shall in no way interfere with your plans to complete the ritual."

As she stepped away to answer the call, he couldn't help but relish what the day had brought him. He had access to a doppelgänger, he knew his brother was close at hand, and he was on the verge of  _killing_  Klaus for what he had done to their family. Perhaps, then, he could find peace within himself.


	16. Bad Deals in Good Faith

There was a dagger in her hand and a smarmy asshole in front of her. A big part of Caroline just wanted to bury the damn thing in John Gilbert's shriveled up heart. Not only was he back in town, but he was also  _in her home_. He had strode right in with Stefan and presented the dagger to her as if he were offering up the answer to all of her problems. To be fair, he was trying to offer her up the answer to  _one_  of her problems. She was almost sure he also was attempting to kill her in the process. Not once did he mention that a  _vampire_  who tried to use this on an original would die.

"Wait a second."

She held up her hand and folded down all the fingers but one. As much as she was tempted, it was the index, not the middle one.

"One, what makes you think Elijah needs to be  _taken care of_ , and two," she brought up her middle finger to join the first, "how do you even know about this thing?"

Given how arrogant and patronizing he usually was, it was amazing that someone hadn't killed John before now. The smirk he leveled at her nearly made her want to change his luck in that regard.

"Stefan called me for assistance. He said that Elijah might interfere with the plan to keep Elena alive. I went to Isobel to see if she could help. She's very good at finding out things. All you have to do is dip the dagger in the ash and then put it in Elijah's heart."

If she needed confirmation that Klaus was behind the dagger finding its way into her hands, she now had it. What she didn't know was if Klaus intended for her to use it, or if that was something that John was aiming for. Her gut tried to tell her that Klaus would never try to kill her. Her gut couldn't seem to remember that she wasn't dealing with the same Klaus.

The conversation continued, though Caroline's mind was only half on it; the other half was busy trying to figure out how not to piss of Klaus  _or_  Elijah. John left, apparently satisfied that she was onboard with his plan. Stefan was obviously a bit more observant.

"You don't trust him?"

Rolling her eyes, she put the dagger on her coffee table next to where John had placed the bottle of white oak ash and sat down on the couch. After Stefan took a seat in the char across from her, she deliberately relaxed her shoulders and gave him a smile.

"Bonnie's Grams and I did a  _lot_  of research into the original vampires. We came across information on these kinds of daggers. It all matches up with what John said. However, there was one thing that John failed to mention. A vampire who uses this against an original will die as well."

At first, Stefan only looked mildly troubled. However, she could tell by the mounting horror in his expression the moment he remembered how John had made sure to always say that  _she_  could use the dagger on Elijah. That wasn't the only thing wrong with the situation, however, and Caroline decided that Stefan needed to know just how bad it was. While she couldn't give him the full truth, she could give him a modified version of it.

"It's not just that, though. We've only found secondhand accounts of these kinds of daggers. We don't know how well they actually work, if at all. What if I try and use it, it doesn't work, and then we've got a pissed-off Elijah out for blood?"

For a long moment, Stefan just looked at her, obviously trying to figure out what to do. Leaning forward, he rested his elbows on his knees, hands clasped loosely between them.

"Do you think we can really trust Elijah?"

Caroline didn't bother trying to stop the burst of laughter that came out of her.

"Everything we've learned so far has shown us that the number one rule of dealing with an original vampire is that you  _never_  fully trust them."

Standing, she carefully picked up the dagger and bottle and began walking toward her room to put them somewhere safe. She didn't think they would use them, but she still hadn't figured out a way to tell Elijah that Klaus had their family with him without causing Klaus to lash out in paranoia because she had too much information. She wasn't one of his siblings, so she wouldn't survive the fallout.

She had just made it to her bedroom doorway when she was brought up short. Suddenly, she had an idea how to handle the Elijah situation. Turning back to a now standing Stefan, she offered up what she hoped was a reassuring smile.

"I believe we can trust Elijah not to try and stop the ritual from happening. The rest we might just have to leave up to Klaus."

Looking at Stefan, Caroline could see him struggling to come up with an alternative strategy. While she appreciated that he wanted to save Elena, his call to John had already proved that his help would only cause problems for their plans. She didn't have any choice but to shut him out.

"Stefan, what you did today? Don't ever do it again. I need to know that I can trust the people around Elena not to screw up our plans. You brought John back into town and that's just one more knife we've got aimed at our back."

He didn't say anything and, after a moment, Caroline turned back around and walked into her room. It didn't take vampire hearing to catch the anger in his stride as he walked out of her living room and toward the front door. It was a slight miracle that the door was undamaged after he slammed it closed.

She found herself lying on her bed thinking about how difficult the past week had been. It wasn't hard to blame it on Elijah since his arrival had been the cause of most of the difficulty. She could have ignored his presence if part of his agreement not to interfere in her plans hadn't been to be kept in the loop. That self-satisfied smirk on his face when he informed her –after he'd given his word and she'd called off her friends—of his condition to the agreement had made it hard to keep her cool.

While she knew that his plan to kill Klaus actually involved waiting until the ritual was done, she couldn't exactly tell him that. The movies and TV shows always make it seem like it was easy and satisfying to be the one with all the information and pulling the strings. For her, so far, it had been frustrating as well as hard work trying to keep straight who got to know what information. Maybe she wasn't made to be a puppet master. Thankfully, she had her mother, Bonnie, and Sheila to help her.

She had been even more thankful for Bonnie and her Grams when Elijah had shown up in Mystic Falls with Jonas and Luka Martin the day after they made their deal. He apparently hadn't been expecting her to be close to such powerful witches and she took special delight in letting him know that they already had a way to save Elena  _and_  the other two sacrifices. She could only imagine how he'd try to use her needing the Martins against her. She had hoped he would take the hint and be content with simply being kept updated on their progress.

Not even a week later, though, Elijah proved he wouldn't easily be pushed into the background. He had shown up at her house, supposedly to 'acquaint himself' with everything involved in her plan. She had been forthcoming –save for the exact details on how she knew what she did, the whole time travel bit, and Silas— but it soon became obvious what his  _real_  goal was. He started asking her about Klaus; when they first had contact, how often they talked. It wouldn't be half so frustrating if she hadn't got the same line of questioning from Klaus in regards to Elijah.

After that, it went from weird to downright bizarre. Their conversation had somehow turned more personal, and she let it slip that she hadn't actually been shown the ropes by a vampire. While Stefan  _had_  taught her something of control, which she  _didn't_  tell Elijah about, and she had some basic memories from when Damon had her under his thumb, which she only told him about vaguely, that had been the extent of her training. It was right after that she found herself on the receiving end of an impromptu lesson on the basics of being a vampire.

While some males would have taken the opportunity to turn it into some sexual situation, Elijah hadn't. Instead, it became something else. Where someone trying to get into her pants would have praised everything she did, no matter how poorly done, he pushed her to stretch herself. Only when she had finally made out a conversation he had her listening to from an impressive distance away did he acknowledge how well she was doing. The tone of voice he used and the weight of his hands on her shoulders felt very familiar.

"To be honest, it was like he was playing daddy or something."

Right after Elijah had left, she'd called Bonnie and asked her to come over. After she had chanted and burned sage to set up a privacy barrier, Caroline told her all about his visit. Bonnie's eyebrows had risen when she'd described his behavior.

"So, he  _was_  hitting on you then?"

Caroline threw a pillow at her as she burst into laughter.

"Not  _that_  kind of daddy, you perv! Like, actual father-daughter stuff. It was just like when my dad would help me with something really difficult."

After that, they went on to talk about how Elijah's presence would change their plans –the actual reason behind the need for the magical privacy. When Caroline brought up her fear that Elijah would have the Martins try to magically track the moonstone –and  _why_  had no one done that before?—Bonnie looked more than a little smug when she said that she and Grams had already taken care of it. Caroline had to admit to herself that Bonnie had more than a bit of a right to being smug when she explained that as soon as the other witches –"They said warlocks, Bonnie."— showed up in town, she and Grams had put a masking spell on the moonstone.

Bonnie told her that the spell on the Lockwood cellar was also complete and that her Grams was actually hunting down Mason to tell him that he wouldn't need to use the chains anymore.

"The magic barrier goes up when it gets dark, and goes down when it gets light. Very straightforward and guaranteed against werewolf strength."

Caroline was under the impression that they had thought of everything. Of course, then creepy Uncle John showed up with a dagger that she had somehow completely forgotten about. How the hell did she forget about the daggers that Klaus used to put his siblings out of commission for long stretches of time? She knew she couldn't use the dagger on Elijah, at least not the way Klaus obviously intended her to use it. However, if she was going to cross Klaus, she had to make it count. The only way she could think to do that, would be to offer up the dagger to Elijah as a show of good faith.

The main problem with her solution –aside from the fact that it would piss off Klaus – was that Elijah had never actually left her a way to contact him. He simply had been showing up whenever he wanted over the past few days. She could always try carrying the damn thing around with her wherever she went in case he showed up, but that could get awkward. She could only think of one other option; she would have to arrange a dinner and then invite him to it whenever he popped up next. The whole thing left her very frustrated and she was more than half convinced that was the reason he behaved that way.

Caroline was unaware of how right she was. After a thousand years, the little things were what kept Elijah amused. He enjoyed needling people just to see how far he could go before they finally protested. While he didn't often do so with Caroline –he found himself enjoying mentoring her too much to want her to pull back—he  _did_  enjoy keeping her on her toes. Leaving her no way in which to control when they were in contact was proving an excellent method, going by the frustration evident in her expression. That frustration was, oddly enough, not what he was greeted with when he surprised her with his presence at the Historical Society Tea Party.

He had found himself making polite conversation with the Carol Lockwood and Elizabeth Forbes. As he continued to spin his tale of being a historical writer, he could see Elizabeth's right eyebrow occasionally arch up with some of his more… fanciful additions to the story before she got her expression under control. It was easy to see where Caroline got her sense of humor. Much like with Caroline's frustration, he couldn't resist pushing at her mother's control. The opportunity to push even further came when Carol went to greet newly arrived party guests.

"Why, Elizabeth, you don't seem entirely convinced someone would want to write about your quaint little town."

There was that eyebrow again, complete with an amused smirk to match. She took a sip of her tea before schooling her expression once again and giving a slight cough.

"That's not it at all, Mr.  _Smith_ ," he didn't bother to hide his smile at her tone. Apparently, Elizabeth was as unimpressed with his alias as her daughter was. "I'm sure there are plenty of writers who would find Mystic Falls absolutely fascinating. Though I'm not sure that historical nonfiction would be the particular genre they'd be writing."

Noticing that her cup was empty, he quietly signaled for one of the young women carrying teapots around. As he shifted position, he took the opportunity to rest his hand lightly at the small of her back. Although her expression read as amused and slightly indulgent, he could hear her heartbeat pick up just slightly as he rubbed his thumb against the fabric of her top.

"Whatever you're trying to do, I'm sure you could do it  _so_  much better if you tried it  _without_  touching my mother."

The reprimand had been whispered from the doorway, but he could clearly hear in her voice how much Caroline didn't appreciate his overly familiar behavior. When Elizabeth noticed the direction of his gaze and followed it, he finally removed his hand.

"Your daughter is very protective."

The small huff and amused expression she aimed at him showed that she didn't need to hear what was said to know what had upset Caroline. Quickly turning serious, however, she responded, "It runs in the family."

Tilting his head in acknowledgment he said, "An admirable trait."

Something over his shoulder seemed to catch her eye and cause her to stiffen. Turning, he saw John Gilbert walking toward him. While his own research had only provided the bare bones about the man, Caroline had let it slip that he was 'a slimy toad who everyone hated' and wasn't to be trusted. Watching the man in question walk toward them with a very self-satisfied expression on his face, Elijah found himself inclined to agree with Caroline's assessment.

"John. I was really hoping you would have left town again by now."

John's face subtly shifted into a sneer.

"And I was hoping you would have come to your senses and stopped associating with vampires."

There was a shift in his expression, and he suddenly resembled countless other opportunistic bottom-feeders Elijah had encountered over the past millennium.

"I wonder what the council would think if I were to let it slip that the sheriff's daughter was a vampire and that the sheriff herself was  _consorting_  with vampires."

John's not-at-all subtle once over of Elijah left little doubt of what he thought she was doing and with  _whom_  he thought she was doing it. Elizabeth appeared less embarrassed than bored by his attempt at intimidation. Just as Elijah was about to interject, he caught a movement on the other side of Elizabeth from the corner of his eye.

"The first time they'd just laugh in your face. After that, they would probably begin to question  _why_  you had it out for my mom," While John looked completely caught off guard by her presence, Caroline looked as if she had known this was going to happen. However, Elijah had learned that she was rather good at faking confidence.

"After that, it's only a matter of time before they run you out of town. Compulsion's a crude yet _effective_  weapon."

Caroline looked as if she expected the conversation to be done at that point. After a moment of shock, however, John quickly recovered.

"Compulsion's a bit difficult when people are on vervain, Caroline."

Elijah was quickly losing his patience with the conversation. He restrained himself from ending it in a very brutal and efficient manner however, when he noticed Caroline nodding her head and humming in agreement with John. What did the baby vampire have up her sleeve?

"Yes, the council is on vervain. Supplied by a member of the local vampire population at that! And I was there when they received their very first dose."

John seemed to register her meaning a few seconds after Elijah himself did. He had to wonder what else she had compelled the council to do or believe when she had the chance. He was drawn from his imaginings when he noticed a very cold look had come across Caroline's face.

"If you try to threaten my mom again, I'm going to take that pretty magic ring of yours and we'll see how brave you are then."

John stared at her for a short moment, then turned and swiftly left. The three of them were left to stare silently after his retreating form. Elizabeth was the one to end the moment.

"Good thinking, compelling the counsel."

Caroline turned to her mother with a wide-eye look that clearly said she'd been caught doing something wrong.

"So… you think we should maybe switch out their vervain for a bit and do that, then?"

While Elijah was left silent with the minor shock of Caroline's bluff, her mother was having no such problem. Through the laughter she tried to muffle behind her hand, she told Caroline that they should definitely think about it.

The matter apparently settled in Caroline's mind, she quickly turned an overly bright smile on him.

"I'm so glad you're here today. I wanted to invite you to a small dinner I'm throwing tomorrow. Technically, it's… kind of in your honor. Please say you'll come because I've got a surprise for you!"

He was bemused by her manner. Anyone looking on would think she was simply inviting him to a social dinner where she might be surprising him with a rare diary for his historical research. However, his time in this world had taught him to be wary of anything that looked too benign or innocuous.

"I really do hope it's a pleasant surprise, Caroline. I'm not fond of the other sort."

Her expression was relaxed and unguarded when she replied, "I think you'll definitely find it to be a pleasant one."

While she  _was_  good at faking confidence, he believed he would be able to tell if she was lying about her intentions with him. Nothing in her expression, tone, or body language led him to believe she was being anything other than honest. With a smile, he agreed to dinner.

As she was handing him a slip of paper with an address, date, and time already written on it –at his raised eyebrow she only shot him a haughty look—she let slip that there would be a small gathering of people at the dinner. Before he could inquire as to who would be attending, she was already on her way across the room, playing the part of the perfect social butterfly the whole way.

"Your daughter is quite a force of nature."

Elizabeth, when she answered, looked more sad than proud.

"She's good at being larger than life. It makes you forget that she still needs protecting from so much. I'm just afraid that I'm not going to be enough to protect her."

She inhaled deeply before he could respond, seeming to shake off her mood, and changed the subject. Her words stuck with him, however, and he was still thinking about them when he arrived at Pearl's home the next night. Judging by her manner at the dinner, however, she seemed to have put the conversation out of her mind and so he chose to do the same.

Walking into the house, he was surprised to find John there among the vampires and witches, though less surprised to find Elizabeth there. He recognized Harper from their first meeting, though he hadn't seen the relatively young vampire around since then. Perhaps Pearl and her daughter Anna had been trying to keep him out sight because of the part he played in Elijah's temporary death. While he held no grudge against Harper for the incident, he didn't inform the three of that as he greeted them. A little fear might keep them all in line.

Unable to resist needling Caroline a little, he made sure she was in eye line when he raised Elizabeth's hand to his lips. However, he did refrain from turning her hand over and placing a kiss on her palm, even though he would dearly love to see if it would cause her to blush. Even over Caroline's less than delicate cough, he caught a small huff of amusement. Looking up, he saw Sheila and Bonnie walking into the room.

"Ahh, the Bennetts. A pleasure as always to see you."

Neither looked pleased to see him. However, John  _did_  – overly so, in fact. That look had Elijah almost tensing in preparation for some sort of betrayal. Externally, he gave no sign of his wariness, only raising an eyebrow and sending a condescending smirk at the man. The flare of rage he saw in John's eyes for a moment did give him a bit of pleasure. Before he could decide if it would be worth it to verbally get under the man's skin, he caught a movement out of the corner of his eye. This was someone he hadn't met and whom his regrettably brief research had not shown to be associated with the doppelgänger in some way.

Apparently seeing what had caught his attention, Caroline introduced him in a barely civil tone.

"Elijah, this is Maddox. He's a witch and a… an acquaintance of ours."

While she was clearly not fond of the young man, he was just as clearly  _very_  interested in her. Given that he was here while she clearly did not wish it, he was obviously  _extremely_  new in town, and he was a witch; it didn't take long for Elijah to figure out that Maddox was one of Klaus' witches. Not only that, but Caroline was clearly aware of this. The only piece of the puzzle left to figure out was if Klaus and Maddox knew she was aware.

Caroline made quick work of ushering them all into the large dining room. While it was obvious that there were no caterers, someone had expended a great deal of effort to make the table more than presentable. They had even gone to the trouble of placing name cards at each seat. Judging by her proud expression, he assumed that someone had been Caroline herself.

While it was only subtly obvious, Elijah could tell that they had all been instructed to make polite small talk. He could also tell that, although they went out of their way to include him in the conversation, they were not truly comfortable with it. He could try and put them at ease –he had learned how to be extremely charming over the centuries—but it was just so much more entertaining to keep them off-balance. Seeing Caroline and Elizabeth occasionally amused by one of his well-delivered barbs certainly didn't discourage him. John, on the other hand, could apparently only take so much.

Turning to Elizabeth, he gave a false smile and said, "I do wonder what our fellow council members would say if they could see us now, sitting down to eat with the monsters."

Before he could answer, a loud bang drew everyone's attention to the end of the table. Caroline was glaring coldly at John, napkin fisted beside her plate where she'd obviously slammed it down. Within seconds, however, her expression morphed into an overly bright smile that she directed down the table to Elijah.

"I distinctly remember promising you a surprise!"

Without waiting for a response, she pushed her chair back from the table and headed over to the sideboard. While most of the dinner guests looked as if they had been expecting this particular turn of events, John and Maddox both looked confused. As Caroline pulled a black, rectangular box from the cabinet, both of them seemed to get quietly angry. Intrigued, Elijah pushed back his chair and chose to meet her halfway.

Placing the box in his hands, she began with a smile, "I know we have a deal, but when this fell into my hands, I just knew it would be the perfect show of good faith and something you would truly appreciate."

While he hadn't been sure what to expect in the box, he never would have guessed at the truth. Inside, nestled in a bed of satin, lay a dagger and a bottle of ash. Specifically, a bottle of white oak ash and one of the daggers Klaus used to temporarily 'kill' and box up family members. If this dagger had made its way to Caroline, clearly the intent was for her to use it on him, not gift it to him. As he looked into her serious expression, it was clear she knew what the dagger did and what she was risking.

Later that night evening, as everyone was getting ready to leave, he noticed a troubled expression on Caroline's face. Following her line of sight, he saw Maddox walking into another room, phone in hand, apparently texting someone. Elijah followed John toward the door, letting the others believe he was leaving. Before reaching the front door, however, he turned into an empty room. Almost immediately after, he heard someone walk past and caught a quick glimpse of Maddox as he left the house.

He could hear Caroline begin to say, "We should probably," when she was interrupted by the ringing of her phone. "Guess I didn't move fast enough. Everyone just… Just stay quiet."

He heard Caroline answer the phone, and then his brother's voice came through far too calm.

"Caroline, sweetheart, how was your dinner this evening?"

"Oh, you know, the wine was lovely, the roast was done to perfection, and I managed to avoid your plan to get me killed."

While the last was said in nearly a growl, when she continued, her voice was almost weary.

"I've done everything I can to make this easy for you. I've gotten Elena to cooperate, I've got a vampire and a werewolf who aren't going to try and run, and I'm looking for the moonstone. I just don't understand  _why_  you would want me dead right now."

Elijah silently made his way to the hallway outside the room the others were gathered in, making sure to keep himself out of sight.

"Tell me, love, what makes you think I tried to get you killed."

The short laugh that came from Caroline was anything but amused. He didn't realize she could reveal herself to be so jaded with just a single sound.

"John Gilbert showed up with a dagger he said could take Elijah out of the picture, insisting that I be the one to use it on him. It didn't take much for me to figure out that you were the one who sent it. The question I have to ask is, did you think I would risk pissing off an original without doing my homework, or did you think I wouldn't find out that a vampire who uses the dagger on an original dies?"

Caroline sounded less offended than… hurt. As though Klaus' low opinion of her was unexpected and painful. Klaus' voice, however, showed no signs of either remorse or anger.

"So, instead of possibly upsetting Elijah, your plan was to hand him the dagger I gave you and take your chances with my anger?"

He could practically feel the tension of the vampires in the room. Caroline, however, seemed prepared for this conversation.

"Actually, my plan was to hand over the dagger to him so I could continue to live  _while_  possibly earning a bit of trust from him. I was hoping to use that trust and whatever leverage you could provide to stop him from killing you."

The shocked silence from Klaus was a perfect counterpoint to the stillness that had taken over Elijah. He didn't know what surprised him more; that she knew he was still planning on killing Klaus, or that she seemed so determined to keep him alive.

"I have his word that he won't try and stop the ritual, but he never said a thing about after. I need you alive, Klaus. So you need to give me something to work with and you need to  _not_  get me killed."

When Klaus spoke again, his voice was more relaxed, almost amused.

"You seem so certain that I have some way of staying my brother's hand beyond that dagger that you took out of play."

Caroline's reply was to the point. "You always have a back-up plan."

Klaus hummed in agreement, and then, in a brisk tone replied, "Set a meeting up with dear old Elijah."

Though he seemed ready to continue, Caroline interrupted him with a wry, "That really won't be necessary."

In confusion, Elijah raised his head. Across from him, on the hallway wall, was a mirror. In it, he could clearly see Caroline staring at his reflection. While she was still clearly focused on Klaus and his temper, she spared him a wry smile before she continued.

"Your brother seems to have a habit of eavesdropping on my conversations."

Without waiting for Klaus' response, Elijah strolled into the room, deciding to take over the conversation. Perhaps it was her passing resemblance to Rebekah, or the fact that she had chosen to hand over the dagger in front of someone she knew to be Klaus' spy, but either way, he felt the need to try and protect her.

"While I am grateful that Miss Forbes helped me avoid the same fate as our siblings, I have to wonder at her insistence that you not be killed. Would she be so determined to keep you alive if she knew  _why_  I wanted you dead?"

The sound of Klaus' mocking laughter sparked anger in his gut and had his fangs itching to drop. "I doubt your belief in a lie would change her mind about keeping me alive."

Everything in Elijah seemed to stop. His brain refused to process what he had heard. Apparently understanding his silence for the shock it was, Klaus continued.

"Yes, Elijah, our dear family is still with me and always has been. Truth be told, I'm a bit disappointed that you know me so little that you actually believed I would throw them in the ocean."

Klaus' voice was genial when he said, "Be a good big brother and refrain from attempting to kill me, and I'll reunite you with them."

Elijah barely heard himself agree, though he was sure he did when Klaus began speaking to Caroline.

"Now, Caroline, what should we do about you?"

He could see her lips thin in anger, but she wisely held her tongue.

"When I sent the dagger to you, it was with the message that a human was to use it. I never wanted you dead, love. I still don't. You did force my hand, however, so you will have to be punished. Do you understand what that means?"

He could see the moment she truly understood what he meant; could hear it in her shuddering breath.

"I understand."

Without a word, Klaus hung up. For a moment, everyone was silent, but then Bonnie spoke up.

"What is it, exactly, that you understand, Caroline?"

When she raised her eyes to answer friend, Caroline looked as if she were already grieving.

"He won't kill me over this, and I know Elena's safe. Do you remember what happened with Ben? We don't know who all he's gotten to, and we can't protect everyone."

While he couldn't help her protect everyone, he could at least take some of her burden. Crossing over to where she stood, he placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"In return for your show of good faith this evening, I can offer you one of my own. I will do everything in my power to ensure that your mother is safe."

When her eyes shot up to his, he could see that he had clearly taken her by surprise. After staring at him for a bit, clearly trying to decide if she could trust him, she nodded her head.

Turning to stare at nothing in particular, she let out a deep sigh and said, "I'm gonna need a drink."


	17. It's Here the Family's Broken

As Caroline exited the Mystic Grill and started across the street toward her car, she was thinking back on her most recent conversation with Katherine. After her peace offering to Elijah and the subsequent call from Klaus, she needed to talk to someone who truly understood the lengths to which Klaus could go. If she actually trusted Elijah fully, she could have talked to him, but like she had told Katherine, while she might trust him to keep her mother out of Klaus' clutches, she didn't think he'd risk not seeing his family again by completely going against his brother.

Unfortunately, there were far too many things that Klaus could do for either her or Katherine to narrow them down. They wouldn't have any more chances to brainstorm, either, since everyone seemed to be keeping a very close eye on her. She understood that she was taking a risk by confiding in Katherine, but she knew that the others might start to question her judgement if they knew. It might lead someone –specifically Stefan— to take some sort of rash action.

Caroline opened her car door and settled in, trying hard to tamp down her frustration with Stefan. Once, she had seen him as one of her best friends, her mentor even. Now, the break from him being in town had been a welcome relief. But as grateful as she was that Stefan was with Elena last weekend, though –lord only knows what Stefan might have done or said during Klaus' call— she had to admit having him back this weekend was necessary. With Lexi and Lee pumped full of vervain and sent off with more in hand, Stefan's muscle and reflexes would be welcomed when it came to protecting everyone else.

She was trying to come up with a good reason to give Elena for why Stefan wasn't a likely target when Isobel stepped in front of her now-idling car. Like a puzzle piece falling into place, she was hit with the memory of Elena telling them about her mother being controlled by Klaus and taking her. Yet again, the universe seemed to be ensuring things didn't change too drastically by recreating some of the events from the other timeline. This time, however, Isobel wasn't here to deliver a message to Elena. Without the woman having said anything, Caroline already knew that whatever was going to happen was Klaus' punishment for her actions.

Caroline did her best to remain calm despite the dread welling up in her chest as Isobel made her way to the passenger side and got in the car. She handed over her phone when asked for it and watched as Isobel turned it off. She couldn't help the small part of her that wished someone would come along and stop whatever was going to happen. Someone had to have asked John who he got the dagger from and figured out Isobel was under Klaus' control.

Caroline's wild wishful imaginings were interrupted by Isobel's apparent need to bond.

"I've been watching you play at being human. Pretending nothing has changed. All the extracurricular school activities, heading up all those town committees, hell, even becoming a beauty queen. You're holding on too hard to things that don't matter."

Caroline turned a nasty glare on her and retorted, "So I should just let go of any bit of humanity that I have? That humanity is what's driving me to make sure Klaus gets what he wants. I don't think your puppet master would be too pleased if I gave that up."

Isobel seemed unfazed by Caroline's anger, which only frustrated the young vampire more.

"When you become a vampire, you eventually realize that you have to let go of some of the things that seemed so important when you were human. There's far too much waiting for you in the world to be tied down by the petty trappings of a human life. These people will only hold you back and they will never understand that you're so much more than them."

For some reason, Isobel's speech hit a nerve. The woman may have sought to play on some superiority complex she thought Caroline might possess, but she had managed to hit on her big, unavoidable fear of abandonment. It was something that Caroline did _not_ like to think about, and the fact that Isobel was unintentionally probing that particular wound made her want to lash out.

"Petty trappings of a human life? You mean like the daughter you gave up. The same daughter, by the way, that you're doing your best to lead to her death. That kind of 'petty trapping'? That sounds less like being a vampire, and more like being a complete monster. I'll pass."

She refused to feel guilty about the spark of pain that briefly crossed Isobel's face. The woman had chosen to try and save Katherine over her own daughter, she deserved whatever pain she got.

After that, they continued the ride in silence. It wasn't long before the scenery began to look familiar. A sick sense of dread began to form on Caroline's gut as she realized where they were headed. By the time they reached her father's cabin, it was all she could do not to jump out of the vehicle to see if Klaus had him there. Was this what Isobel had been preparing her for? Was she about to lose someone from her 'human' life?

Isobel didn't say anything as she brought the car to a full stop and got out. Caroline was stepping out herself, eyes on the other women, when Isobel began speaking again.

"When I was human, after I left Elena with Grayson and Miranda, I used to dream that one day I could meet her. I had this fantasy that she would come and find me when she turned eighteen and we could be a part of each other's lives.

"For a little while after I had turned, I still held onto that fantasy. After the first few kills however, I realized that a human family was something a vampire just couldn't hold onto. I'm actually glad Elena never got to meet the woman I used to be. It would make this so much harder."

Before Caroline could ask what it would make harder, Isobel's phone rang. After a glance at the screen, she answered with a quick, "We're here," and then turned the phone on speaker and then set it on the hood of the car.

"Good afternoon, Caroline. I'm sorry I haven't been in contact this past week. You see, I've been trying to come up with a suitable punishment for you. It couldn't be as light as the last one and it couldn't be _too_ severe since you're such a valuable ally. I do believe I've finally figured it out. Isobel, please explain to Caroline her current choices."

When Caroline turned to look at Isobel, she could see the other woman's face was blank, the same as the face of the man Isobel had compelled. Before she even began to speak, Caroline had an inkling of how this would all end.

"If you want the chance to negotiate for Elena's survival, all you have to do is stand here and watch what happens without interfering. If you stop me, or if you leave, there will _be_ no negotiation. Do you understand?"

And just like that, Caroline knew what was going to happen. The universe, much like Klaus, had a twisted sense of humor. Instead of Elena watching her mother burn as a message from Klaus, _she_ would have to be the one to watch.

"I understand."

Her words seem to act as a trigger for Isobel who smiled in something close to relief.

"Tell my daughter that I'm sorry that I was such a disappointment."

With that, she quickly ripped off her necklace and dropped it to the ground. Before it even hit the grass, Isobel was already starting to smolder in the sunlight. As much as she wanted to, she couldn't bring herself to look away. Because even though this was Klaus' doing, it was also her fault. She had crossed Klaus knowing there would be consequences. She had foolishly thought, however, that _she_ would be the only one to pay them.

As Isobel started screaming, Caroline felt tears rolling down her cheeks. She has killed people before, and seen them die in various ways. It felt _different_ somehow to be forced to watch someone slowly burn, all the while knowing that it was her fault. She had killed Elena's mother.

When it was all over and Isobel lay dead on the grass that Caroline used to run and play on as a child, Caroline continued to stare at the smoldering corpse, refusing to let Klaus know how much this had affected her. She waited in silence for Klaus to explain how he was going to make sure this was truly a punishment for her. After all, Klaus knew that she and Isobel were nowhere near close. She didn't have to wait long before she heard a deep sigh from the phone on the vehicle.

"Now, my dear, cunning Caroline, be a good girl and give Elena's mother a proper burial. After you are done, you may turn on your phone. And when you make it back to Mystic Falls, make sure you tell our little doppelgänger the choice you made, and exactly _why_ you made it."

His tone was faux understanding with a touch of genuinely patronizing which grated on Caroline's nerves. Everything in her screamed to lash out at him. She knew that she had to hold her tongue for everyone's sake. His tone turned cold with his next words and Caroline was very glad she hadn't said anything.

"If you or your friends try and cross me again, you will be right back where you're standing now. Only, this time, you will be watching me disembowel your father in front of you. I will then ensure that you are the _only_ thing to survive from your little backwoods town. And I will make sure that ending your existence is not an option for you."

With that, he quickly disconnected, leaving Caroline feeling numb as she stared at the burned corpse of Elena's mother. With a deep sigh, she went searching for a shovel in order to dig yet another grave. She found morbid amusement in the fact that she seemed to be spending far too much time digging graves for vampires that the Mikaelsons killed.

Back in Mystic Falls, Klaus switched off his cell phone and slid it into his pocket, crossing over to where Maddox stood over the unconscious body of Alaric. Perhaps if she hadn't just witnessed Elena's mother burn up in the sun, Caroline would have stopped to remember that, along with Isobel taking Elena before, Alaric's body had also been taken over. As it was, she had no idea that as Isobel had been driving her away from Mystic Falls, Alaric had been on his way to Maddox's home. She also had no idea that Alaric was being prepared for possession even as she was preparing Isobel for burial.

Taking in the tubes and jars of blood hooked up to the self-proclaimed vampire hunter, Klaus rested a hand on Maddox's shoulder.

"Is everything prepared?"

At the witch's nod, Klaus slid his hand to the back of the man's neck and gave a slight squeeze in recognition. He then turned and made his way to the overly large and archaic-looking steamer trunk sitting open in the middle of the room. With a quick, "No time like the present, then," he climbed in and made himself comfortable.

Hours later Klaus was making himself at home in Alaric's body as well as in his house. Going through the man's closet, he began to wonder if he should have chosen a different body. Just as he began to contemplate if anyone would notice if Alaric's fashion sense were suddenly and vastly to improve, the man's phone gave an annoying alert. He gave a small smirk when he saw that it was Bonnie texting him to say that Caroline couldn't be found and they needed him at Pearl's home.

"Looks like it's show time, then."

On his way out the door he made sure to text Maddox, betting on Caroline and Bonnie having not told Alaric that Maddox wasn't to be trusted. When he arrived at Pearl's, Maddox was standing outside waiting for him. When they entered, they were both greeted by Bonnie. Though her look was welcoming when she had seen Alaric, it turned vicious when she spotted Maddox walking in behind him. He could admit that he did feel a bit of alarm for his faithful witch when she came storming toward them, a magic wind beginning to whip the air around her.

"You! I swear to god, if anything happens to…"

Before she could continue, an overly auto-tuned voice singing about a DJ blowing her speakers up stopped the young witch in her tracks. Quicker than he had seen a human move in recent memory, she ran across the room to yank her phone off the table and answer it, the young Gilbert quickly by her side with his hands on her shoulders. As Alaric's lover Jenna made her way over to him, he half listened to Bonnie's end of the conversation.

"Caroline? Where have you been? We were so afraid something had happened to you."

Looking around, Klaus could see that the Bennett witch had managed to gather nearly everyone at Pearl's home. Stefan was huddled on the couch comforting the doppelgänger –and wouldn't his sister just seethe at that sight—while Pearl, Anna, and Harper stood by Sheila Bennett, waiting to hear what Caroline had to say. Next to them, of course, was Benjamin who was glaring harshly at Maddox. Bygones were, apparently, not bygones between the two.

The werewolf, Mason, was unsurprisingly absent, but he was a bit surprised to see that Caroline's mother was not there either. Perhaps she was out looking for Caroline. If she was, he only wished she had taken his _brother_ , Elijah, and his two pet witches with her. The less time spent in Elijah's company, the less chance his brother would somehow suspect anything.

Turning his attention back to Bonnie, he could see by the expression on her face that she was confused and growing more so.

"Yeah, that won't be a problem. Everyone's here already. We thought something happened to you."

Whatever Caroline said very obviously disturbed the witch, but she simply agreed, asked Caroline to hurry home, and then hung up. Looking around at everyone, she gave a wavering smile and, obviously for the sake of those without vampire hearing, explained what was going on.

"Caroline said some things happened to her that she needs to talk to us about. She asked that we all stay here and wait for her because she's going to need some help."

Klaus knew well what had happened to Caroline today, though he failed to see what help she would need. Luckily, he would be here to learn for himself what was going on. And, judging by the array of alcohol to which Jenna was leading him, he would be at least a bit comfortable as he was spying.

He had just gotten settled on a couch with a glass of bourbon in one hand and Alaric's lover tucked against his side when the door opened. The pictures and video feed of Caroline hadn't done her justice. Even in her obviously somber mood, there was a light to her. Perhaps that was what drew all of these people to her and had them ready to follow such a young vampire's plans. If he managed to play his cards right, perhaps he could use that light to his advantage.

For now though, it was time to sit back and enjoy the theatrics. As if he had directed the scene himself, his doppelgänger was the first to reach Caroline. As Elena started rattling off questions, she took a deep breath and held her hand up between then. Dangling from her fingers was Isobel's necklace. At the sight, Elena stopped talking and stared at it before tentatively reaching out to take it.

"Isobel met up with me outside the Grill today. She took me out of town where Klaus called and gave me the choice of having a chance to negotiate with him or saving Isobel. I felt that it was better to save all of us, so I chose to…"

He saw Caroline take a deep breath and fight off the tears before she continued in a voice that only slightly wavered.

"I watched as she took off her necklace and burned up in the sun."

He had to admire the girl. She didn't try and sugarcoat it or paint herself as the victim. She laid out her choice in a straightforward manner, devoid of melodrama or excessive emotion and, as if waiting bravely for her execution, stared silently and straight ahead at no one.

Elena, on the other hand, was all watery eyes and stuttering breath as she searched for something to say. When Caroline looked at her again, she must have seen something in her friend's eyes that gave her a bit of peace.

Taking a deep breath, she said in a watery voice, "I'm not sure how I'm supposed to feel about this. I didn't know her, and what I did know I didn't like. But still…"

Caroline reached out and placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder, then glanced toward Stefan and then Jenna as she spoke.

"I'm going to need you two to take Elena home. She's going to need to process, and she shouldn't be alone."

When Elena made to protest, Caroline shook her head and gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze.

"What we have to talk about next doesn't have anything to do with you, and you've already got a lot on your plate. Go home and rest."

Watching Elena give into Caroline's gentle demands and walk out with both Stefan and Jenna, he was only mildly surprised that the group bonds hadn't seemed to take even a minor hit from Caroline's choice. He found himself oddly content with that. After all, he didn't need her broken, he just needed her to remember who was ultimately in control. He did have to wonder why she had left out his threat on her father, and if that's what she thought the group remaining in Pearl's home could help with. After Stefan was out of earshot, he quickly discovered that he was only partially correct.

"After I buried Isobel and started on my way here, I turned my phone back on. Almost immediately I got a call from my mother telling me that John Gilbert had called my dad in."

Sometimes, he was truly amazed at how fate seemed to play right into his hands. Most of those gathered seemed at a loss as to what this could mean, but the expression on both the Bennett witches faces told them that they both knew what he did; Bill Forbes was a rather accomplished vampire hunter. Apparently, John hadn't given up on his hopes of getting Caroline out of the picture.

Walking further into the room, Caroline began to lay out a plan that was simple and straightforward. At the same time, she began to move some of the furniture in what appeared to be preparation for a meeting. While she seemed to be looking inward as she went over the details, she took the time to make eye contact with each person as their part in the plan was discussed. He had assumed from other people's descriptions that she was a natural born leader, to see it in action –even on this small of a scale—was a bit impressive.

"I've told them to meet me here. I'm sorry, Pearl, but everyone was already here and it was last minute." The older vampire simply dipped her head in acknowledgement of the apology, but made no protest to her home being invaded nor to Caroline rearranging her home for said invasion.

"When they get here, I'm going to need Jonas, Luka, and Maddox to hold John and my father immobile so that Ben and Alaric can search them for weapons."

She ostensibly was addressing all three, though she turned a pointed look on Maddox as she said, "Please assume that anything I ask you to do comes with the request that you do it with as little pain as possible."

Maddox only smirked at her in response. The boy did love to test the limits. Caroline did not seem to deem it worth taking exception to, as she then turned her attention to the Bennett witches, her demeanor quickly turning slightly imploring.

"Bonnie, Sheila, both of you know my mother and have been around her a lot. Would you be able to tell if she's been… magically influenced of anything of that nature?"

When the two assured her that they would be able to tell if Liz was being magically controlled, she visibly relaxed and then looked at each of the remaining vampires in turn.

"Harper, Anna, Pearl, and Elijah, I'm going to need you to look as intimidating as possible but just stay in the background. We don't have the luxury of being really subtle, but I don't want to have to come right out and say that they're outnumbered and outgunned."

She seemed about to move on when a thought seemed to strike her.

"Speaking of not having the luxury for subtlety, I'm going to need one of the magically inclined among you to open the door from a safe distance. We don't want to risk it in case they decide to attack right off the bat."

When there were no protests, she turned to Jeremy, who was still standing behind the youngest Bennett witch with hands on her shoulders.

"Jeremy, you're here to remind John that there's a hell of a lot more at stake than his ego. Also, I need you to stop Bonnie from giving him an aneurysm when he inevitably pushes too far. His fancy ring might bring him back from the dead, but that's still no reason to go killing him. No matter how much we want to."

The little bit of levity seemed to be the signal for everyone to find what they deemed to be 'their place' in the tableau. Unable to resist some sort of contact with her now that he was physically in her presence –even if it wasn't in his own body—Klaus made his way over to Caroline.

"Bit crowded in here, isn't it?"

For a second she only looked at him in confusion, and then a tired, yet amused smile broke across her face.

"I prefer to think of it as cozy."

Before he could attempt to keep the conversation going, there was a knock at the door and the room went silent. Pasting an almost manic grin on her face Caroline said in a chipper voice, "It's show time, boys and girls!"

With that, the doors were opened, accompanied by a magical gust of wind –purely for effect, Klaus believed— leaving the three humans standing on the other side looking slightly startled. Pearl invited them in with a calm and cultured voice as if they had simply come round for tea. As they cleared the hallway, John and Bill were both brought up short, causing Liz to glance at them in confusion for a moment until her attention was caught by Sheila.

"Sherriff, I'm going to need you to stand right there for a moment. We need to make sure these two haven't done anything to you."

She seemed startled by the request but did as she was asked. At the same time, Klaus moved forward along with Ben in order to check the other two for weapons. They only found a stake on John, but there were a surprising number of weapons hidden on Bill. Had Klaus not been experienced with hunters, he would have missed many off them.

As he handed the last weapon to Ben to be moved to another room, Caroline began speaking in a conciliatory tone as if they hadn't just had to disarm her father.

"I'm so sorry for the awkwardness. We've just had a very trying day. We had to send Elena home with Jenna and Stefan. You see, John, because you tried to get me killed with that dagger, forcing me to have to derail Klaus' plans a bit, he felt that a message needed to be sent. I've just come back from burying Isobel, and Elena's not really sure how to handle that right now."

Bill had turned a confused and slightly angry look on John when Caroline mentioned the attempted murder. It was John's expression, though, that really had Klaus' attention. Apparently, in spite of his hatred of vampires, he still cared for Isobel. Shifting his attention to Caroline, Klaus noticed the dark satisfaction on her face. It didn't really surprise him that she was well aware of the man's lingering affection. He _was_ surprised at how quickly her expression became shuttered as her eyes focused on her father.

"We should probably talk about why you're here, Daddy."

Looking at Lukas and Jonas, she said "Please release them."

Then, turning to look at Maddox, she said in a near-monotone voice, "If either of them makes a move to attack anyone here, immobilize them again. And Maddox? Please make it hurt."

Klaus had seen that cruel twist of Maddox's mouth when he was given an order he would truly enjoy carrying out. Caroline either chose to ignore it, or didn't understand how enraptured his pet had become with her. Klaus hoped that it wouldn't become inconvenient in the future.

As Caroline made her way to the couch she had moved to the center of the room, John and Bill made their way toward the chairs she had set up facing the couch. Both Elijah and Sheila sat on either side of Caroline as if it had all been choreographed. Everyone else arranged themselves around the room in a deceptively casual manner. Klaus made sure that he had a good view of the men in order to see if either would be a problem.

"It seems you invited an awful lot of people to the meeting, sweetheart."

Klaus was impressed that, even with her father's clearly patronizing tone, Caroline didn't react. He well knew how difficult it could be not to lash out when in such a situation.

"I thought it best that you and John both get a good idea of everyone involved in the situation. You're both operating under the illusion that this is a small matter. You have to understand, it goes far beyond some random vampire threatening one or two people's safety. You underestimate how powerful Klaus is, and how far he will go to get what he wants."

Pausing for a moment with her head bowed, Caroline seemed to come to a decision.

"There are ways that we could stop Klaus. There are even ways we could kill him. But I can't let that happen. I _need_ him to break this curse, and I need him alive after.

"After Isobel was dead, Klaus informed me that if any of us cross him again, Daddy, he'd kill you in front of me and then the entire town."

It was not as creative or detailed as his actual threat, but her account did get the basic idea across. The others in the room, though obviously shocked, did not appear to tense up more than they had been, so he could only conclude that there had been no plans to go against him.

"But this goes beyond trying to save you or anyone in this town. I can't explain how it does right now, I just need you to trust me. What I'm doing will save lives. More lives than you can save by killing Klaus or doing whatever it is you're planning on doing to me. Please, Daddy."

Though he couldn't see her face, he could hear the tears in her voice. Whatever expression was on her face seemed to get through to Bill. John seemed less than impressed.

"You can't expect us to believe this bullshit! You're just another power-hungry monster hoping to…"

"Shut up, John."

Bill hadn't raised his voice, but John still stopped mid-sentence to stare at him. When Bill didn't continue, he stuttered out, "You can't honestly believe…"

Clearly having had enough of John, Bill turned a withering glance on him and bit out, "I said shut up, John."

Turning back to Caroline, his voice turned civil, if not warm.

"How can I help?"

Klaus could practically feel the tension leave Caroline's body from where he stood a few feet behind her. He was sure she was relieved, though her tone remained businesslike when she spoke.

"I need you to stay in town. Klaus has already gotten to one person, and we're sure it happened when they left town. I need to know you're here, not holed up in a dungeon somewhere waiting for the moment I slip up. I can't afford that kind of distraction. Other than that, I don't think there's anything…"

Suddenly, her head tilted as she paused. Her voice, when she spoke was distant, as if she was in the middle of coming up with a plan.

"I can't really use you now, but I might need you after the ritual. I'll have to talk to you about it after I've thought it through."

After that, there seemed to be nothing to say. As they stood up, Bill spent a long moment staring at Caroline as if she were a puzzle he couldn't figure out. Klaus could almost understand it; if you spent your whole life hating something, it was probably difficult to adjust to your child becoming that. For the sake of his plans, he did hope it wouldn't become a problem. He was sure Caroline might have an issue helping him if he had to kill her father.

John appeared ready to storm out without a further word. Liz, it seemed, had other plans. It was clear that she had not gotten Caroline's subtlety memo as she had a weapon drawn and pointed right at John's head.

"If you ever try to get my daughter killed, or even so much as hurt, no one will be able to find your body."

As he passed by them, Bill took the time to pause and lay a heavy hand on John's shoulder.

"I can tell you from experience, it's best to believe her when she's got her gun out. She doesn't tend to make idle threats then."

After John gave a shaky nod of his head, Liz lowered the gun and then passed it to Bill. Klaus watched as Caroline arranged for all the weapons to be returned and neatly ushered everyone out of the house. As he walked out the door, he looked back just in time to see Pearl wrap Caroline in a comforting hug. The baby vampire did seem to have a knack for drawing people to her.

Sitting in Alaric's car, he sent out two texts before he began the drive back to the man's apartment. The first he sent to Maddox, telling the witch he would be over tomorrow night. The second he sent to Jenna, asking her to meet him for breakfast. He had two choices; he could either stage a break up which would bring undo attention to him, or he could find a way to switch out her vervain so that he could compel her into believing that her relationship with Alaric was going along normally. While Jenna was an attractive woman, he wasn't inclined to use someone else's equipment in the bedroom. It just seemed a bit too tacky.

Compulsion it was, then.


	18. Visionary Flood of Alcohol

When Bonnie had invited her over to her Grams' newly privacy-spelled workroom, — "Seriously, this needs to be a permanent fixture." — Caroline hadn't been expecting to talk about her friend's dreams. Yes, they were less 'random images her mind created to process the day' and more 'message from the other side', but it still was a bit odd.

"I was walking in the woods near the Lockwood cellar, following Damon's crow," At this, Caroline interrupted to say it wasn't _Damon's_ crow. "When I came across Elijah and another man standing in front of three open caskets. Elijah was holding the dagger you gave him last weekend, and the people in the caskets all had matching daggers in their chests.

While part of Caroline already knew the answer, she just had to make sure.

"This other man, did he happen to have dirty blond hair, possibly a lot of necklaces, and dimples?"

At Bonnie's nod, Caroline gave a deep sigh and said, almost to herself, "And playing the part of our unwitting hybrid hero, Klaus Mikaelson." 

Taking a moment, possibly to let the knowledge of who it was she had seen sink in, Bonnie then continued, "The crow started flying between the people in the casket, grabbing at the daggers with his beak. Suddenly, there was a woman behind me. She pointed at the other man, Klaus, and said that we'd need to get the daggers from him if we really wanted to help her complete her revenge."

There was no doubt in Caroline's mind when, in a resigned voice, she said "Qetsiyah."

Both Sheila and Bonnie seemed to agree. With a small nod, Bonnie concluded by saying that, when she woke up, Damon's crow – " _Again_ , not Damon's!"—was perched at the end of her bed, staring at her.

After a moment, something struck Caroline.

"So, if she's sending us messages, apparently through the crow, to help us because she knows we're 'completing her revenge'… Just how much does she know?"

A soft huff from Bonnie followed by a sardonic, "That's a good question," gave Caroline the impression that it was something her friend had also been wondering about since her dream.

Caroline decided to let go of that train of thought for the time being and move onto figuring out a way to get the daggers from Klaus. She pulled a pen and small notepad from her purse –always a must-have when you had to make complicated plans at the drop of a hat – and began to write as she talked over a new plan with Sheila and Bonnie.

"So, we use the fact that he needs Elena to live in order to make hybrids and that she won't agree if everyone else doesn't live as well to get him agree to our spell,"

She was surprised by Sheila's monotone voice. "And the second spell?"

No, the elder Bennett was still not happy about the spell, but she was obviously resigned to it. In short, the less said about it the better was Caroline's opinion, so she answered with a simple, "I've got plans for that if and when we get it finished."

Devoid of all pride or joy, Sheila responded, "It's finished."

Going back to her paper with a little less weight on her shoulders, she quickly wrote down 'everyone lives' and drew an arrow to the left. After the arrow, she wrote 'secondary curse and Elena will only agree if others live'. Moving on, she continued to talk over her plan, hoping Bonnie and Sheila would let her know if they saw something wrong with it.

"I'll then get the daggers in exchange for Mikael's location and his disturbingly well carved stake."

At this Caroline paused, thinking. Almost as if she could read her mind, Bonnie asked, "And Katherine?"

At a loss, Caroline could only come up with "I'll… make it up as I go along."

Given Bonnie's expression, that came off only slightly less sure than it sounded in her head.

Before any of them could come up with a better idea, Caroline heard three people approaching. Taking a deep breath, she quickly caught the scent of wolves. She recognized Mason's scent right away, but wasn't too sure who the others were. Or, more accurately, she didn't want to believe who the other two were.

"We've got company. And I really want to make a cheesy joke about wolves at the door, but I'm trying to grow as a person."

While they both seemed to get that there were werewolves approaching, neither of the Bennett ladies seemed particularly amused by her joke. She decided it was best to just let it go as they left the room.

Given how often destiny, fate, or whatever it was that chose to replay the last timeline in this one, Caroline shouldn't have pretended it could be anyone at the door with Mason _except_ Jules and Brady. She was surprised, however, at the quick jolt of dread that ran through her at the sight of Brady. It was similar to the feeling that she had gotten when she first saw Alaric again. The memories of torture were, apparently, not always suppressible.

Jules wasted no time with pleasantries. "We're here to talk to the vampire."

Caroline tried really hard not to take it personally. After all, werewolves did have a good reason to be less than friendly towards vampires. That didn't stop it from getting on her last nerve to have them look at her like that when she knew damn well they weren't above getting sick kicks out of torturing vampires. Remembering just how much Brady had enjoyed torturing _her_ , Caroline decided not to play nice.

"The _vampire_ has a name, Jules."

Caroline ignored the part of her that told her enjoying Jules' startled look was being petty. She needed these wolves to know that she was calling the shots, not them. Granted, looking to Bonnie's Grams to let them in might have undercut that slightly, but it wasn't like she was going to risk Sheila's wrath just to win a pissing contest.

It didn't take long after they were settled stiffly on the couch –no offer of tea from Sheila—for them to cut right to the chase. Jules was, predictably, the one who did most of the talking.

"You've managed to convince Mason that some big bad vampire is on his way here to perform some ritual. You've also found a way to convince him to go along with whatever plan you have concocted. The problem I have with this is that we have no proof that there's even an 'original vampire' or that you're in contact with him."

At the last bit, Caroline felt a frisson of irritation. Not because Jules didn't trust her –she'd be a fool to trust a vampire she had never met on _Mason's_ word alone—but because she hadn't actually heard from Klaus directly in two days. It had been strictly texts, and those were infrequent at best. While that wouldn't normally seem like a big deal, it was two days _after_ her 'punishment'. Refusing to let the wolves see her distress, however, Caroline decided to play it off.

"More like he's in contact with me. He's big into texting, likes to use a lot of fancy words, not so much with the emojis."

Brady bared his teeth as if he'd like to transform and take a bite of her right then and there. Caroline continued on as if she hadn't noticed.

"I understand why you don't trust me. But from where I'm sitting, Mason has two choices. He can cooperate and be able to bitch about the pain after the ritual, or he can try and escape and end up dead with his brother or his nephew taking his place."

All three stiffened and seemed ready to attack, but Caroline couldn't seem to find it in her to dial it back.

"It won't be me that kills him. Klaus will probably snatch him up as soon as he gets near the town's border. Now that you, and I'm assuming the rest of your pack, are here, he'd probably snatch you up as well. That way he'll have a back-up in case one of you has a little… accident."

Apparently, Brady only had so much patience. Even as she was finishing up the last of her sentence, he was halfway across the coffee table. Before he could reach Caroline, however, he collapsed on the coffee table, holding his head in pain. A quick look from the corner of her eye confirmed that it was Sheila who had come to her rescue.

"The thing you need to realize, Brady, is that you are _not_ the most powerful creature in the room right now. I'm extending Mason the courtesy of a chance to cooperate and make it through this relatively unscathed when I could just as easily lock him up someplace to ensure I have a werewolf for Klaus. If your pack cooperates, they may even have the chance to become something far more powerful than they are, something no vampire will be able to threaten."

By the time she finished, Sheila had lifted whatever whammy she had laid on Brady and he, Jules, and Mason were all looking at Caroline in curiosity. It was only then that she realized what she had just let slip. Thinking fast on her feet, she tried to do some damage control.

"I can't give you details until after I talk to Klaus and, well, we move on his timetable. But, I'm asking you to take a chance."

While they didn't agree to cooperate, by the time the three werewolves left, Caroline was feeling hopeful that they wouldn't mess up her plans.

After four days, that hope began to wear thin. The pack was _everywhere_. There was even a werewolf standing across from the school when she got out and one walking into the Grill shortly after she took a seat. She could have handled all of this if it weren't for the added stress of Klaus' continued insistence on contacting her only through texts. Something kept niggling in the back of her mind but she just couldn't figure out what she was missing. So, instead of frustrating herself more and more, she decided to try something else.

Alaric's surprised face greeted her insistent knocking. Holding two bottles of what she could only guess was expensive alcohol she had stolen from Stefan's stash, she gave a winning smile.

"I need to get drunk and drinking alone is so very tacky."

With eyebrows raised, he let her in without a word.

While he did ask what the occasion was after the door had closed, when she had told him not to ask, that had been the end of it. It hadn't taken long for them to finish off the two bottles and yet, thanks in no small part to Caroline's vampire metabolism, they were not nearly drunk enough. But eventually, halfway through the second bottle of bourbon that Alaric had produced from his own stash, he passed out, shortly followed by Caroline.

Part of her knew it was a dream when she found herself following the crow down the road that led to the Wickery Bridge. As she turned the bend and could see where the bridge started, she made out three figures –one standing and two lying on the ground at the feet of the first. Caroline had just realized that it was Esther standing over the fallen bodies of her sons Finn and Kol when the stakes –obviously white oak—buried in their chests burst into flame.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw someone step up beside her. It only took a moment to recognize that the red-haired woman crying silently and stoically beside her was Sage. 

After a moment the woman turned to her and said "Either _it_ burns, or _we_ all burn."

Caroline awoke, still slightly drunk, and stared at the crow perched above her on the kitchen island. With a groan, she ungracefully clambered into a standing position.

"I am such an idiot."

Looking around, she spotted Alaric passed out just short of his bed. Even as she stumbled toward him, she pulled her phone out of her pocket and started dialing the number that Jonas Martin had given her –and, honestly, she should _not_ have had to nag him that much to get it! —so that she could have him and his son meet her at the bridge. As she was trying to explain to him that there was, in fact, only one bridge in the town, she heard Elijah in the background saying he would give him directions.

Watching as Alaric looked around very confused, Caroline came to the realization that she might still be a bit too drunk to drive them both to the bridge herself. Without bothering to ask Jonas to hand the phone over to Elijah, she began addressing the vampire.

"Elijah, I'm just this side of too tipsy. Be a good daddy vampire and drive me and Alaric, would ya?"

She could hear Jonas try to stifle a laugh just before she realized what she'd said.

"Daddy vampire?"

She could hear the amusement in Elijah's voice and Alaric, still half-reclined on the floor, was staring at her with raised eyebrows. Refusing to even acknowledge what she had done, Caroline simply asked if he was going to pick her up or not. After he said that he was, she quickly called Bonnie and Maddox to tell them to meet everyone at the bridge as well, making sure to ask Bonnie to call her Grams.

Throughout everything, the crow had remained –silently watching Caroline make her calls. When Alaric asked why they were going to the bridge, the crow cawed before she could answer. Turning to the bird with narrowed eyes and a knowing smile, Caroline pointed at it and said, "You already know, don't you?"

The bird preened and gave a soft caw that sounded almost like a coo. Turning back to Alaric, Caroline gave a megawatt smile and said "We're going to burn the bridge!"

As they climbed into Elijah's car –Alaric in the back with Jonas and Luka, Caroline in the front with Elijah—the crow quickly flew through the still open passenger door and landed on Caroline's lap. When Elijah threw her a questioning look, Caroline said "I'm practicing to be Snow White."

Yeah, she could definitely still feel a decent buzz from the alcohol. She really needed to watch her tongue. Turning to the bird in her lap who, oddly enough, looked very impatient to get going, she gave a sigh and said, "I'm going to have to give you a name. How about Eric?"

The crow, now Eric, gave another soft caw and sidled closer to her torso.

"Eric?" came Elijah's questioning voice.

Giving him a look that let him know just how dense he was being, Caroline answered "You know, Eric, the guy from The Crow?"

While he didn't look as if he had seen the movie, Elijah simply started the car and drove. When they neared the bridge and Caroline unexpectedly told him to stop, he did so with little more than an indulgent sigh. However, he couldn't seem to stop himself from questioning her when she had him open the trunk so that she could stow the sign she had just torn less than gracefully from its posts.

"We're gonna need it when we get to the bridge," was her probably less than helpful answer.

As they finally arrived at said bridge, they found the five witches –sorry, three witches and two warlocks—already there and waiting. Bonnie barely took her mistrustful gaze off Maddox as Caroline asked Elijah nicely to get the sign and then walked up to her.

"Is there a reason he's here?"

Caroline could understand her dislike of Maddox. For her, there was no good reason to happily work for a creature like Klaus. Bodily turning Bonnie to face the bridge, she answered.

"I wanted all the magical mojo I could get for this."

She then took the Wickery Bridge sign and gave it a light toss, relatively speaking, so that it landed about in the middle of the bridge. She then went and stood behind Bonnie, placing her hands on her friend's arms and her chin on her shoulder.

"You remember when Tiki made you mad at the car wash? I want you to do to the bridge what you almost did to her."

With only a small hesitation, Bonnie seemed to strain to light the wood on fire. However, nothing happened. While she could have easily asked one of the other witches –warlocks, whatever—to do it, Bonnie was the one who needed to be reminded that she was a very powerful witch. Seeing no other choice, Caroline took a deep breath and moved around to stand in front of Bonnie.

"Bonnie, do you remember Ms. Cuddles and how she disappeared right after one of our big fights? Yeah, she didn't just disappear. I stole her, took her out to the middle of the woods, and buried her in a shallow grave."

She finished this off with a remorseless grin and waited. Within seconds, Caroline began to feel heat on her face. Quickly moving back behind Bonnie, she watched as flames quickly consumed the bridge.

"Okay, we're going to need to both contain this and speed it up. I don't want to set the woods on fire, but I would also really rather not spend all night out here making sure this whole thing goes up completely."

With hardly even a sideways glance, the others moved in better position to contain and speed up the fire. Taking a break from having just expended a large amount of magic, Bonnie stood back with Caroline and watched as the bridge was rapidly consumed.

After it was clear that nothing was left of the bridge by the metal understructure, Bonnie moved closer and began to ask, "Caroline, why…"

Before she could complete her sentence, however, her nose wrinkled up before her eyes got wide. Obviously, the smell of all the booze she drank was still strong enough for even Bonnie's human senses to pick up.

"Are you drunk?"

She had no time to answer before Sheila's voice cut through the night.

"Tell me that we did not just burn a bridge on a drunken whim!"

Grateful that she could honestly tell Sheila that it wasn't the case, Caroline rushed to explain.

"The bridge was made of the one wood that can kill Klaus."

At this Elijah interrupted. "Nonsense, we burned that tree a thousand years ago."

Caroline _really_ wanted to roll her eyes at his smug tone. She just barely managed not to.

"Yeah, and Katherine had no children, right?" Maybe she didn't entirely stop herself from reacting to his tone. "Nature hates anything that can't be killed, and the witch who made you wasn't strong enough to overcome that. Roughly a century after you burned the original tree, a doppelgänger popped up in its place."

Perhaps, if she had been slightly less tipsy, she would have expected the anger from Jonas. However, as it was, the pain in her head caught her completely by surprise.

"Why would you have us destroy the only thing that could kill Klaus?"

The pain in her head was too great to answer, but it was gone almost as soon as Jonas had finished speaking. Taking a second to recover, Caroline looked up to find Maddox, in obvious pain, pinning Jonas against a car while Luka was apparently laying some sort of magical hurt on him.

Rushing over, she smacked Luka in the back of the head, just hard enough to distract him, and pulled Maddox off of Jonas.

"Enough! Luka, Maddox isn't going to attack your father anymore. Back off. Maddox… no more."

She looked at both in turn to make sure they were going to play nice. She then faced Jonas who, while he didn't look any less angry, did appear ready to listen.

"I get that you're angry we just destroyed any chance of killing Klaus, but we need him alive. There is something coming that's more dangerous than him and if my plans fall through, it could be the end of us. Not just of vampires and werewolves, but of witches, warlocks, doppelgängers, and whatever other supernatural creatures are out there."

Taking a deep breath, she turned and leaned against the car next to him.

"I'm not sure why you _personally_ want Klaus dead…"

"He has my daughter. He's forcing her to help him."

Given everything Katherine had said about Klaus, her memories of what Bonnie had said about Greta in the other timeline, and what she knew of Klaus, she doubted there was much in the way of force going on. However, she didn't think any father would want to think his daughter willingly ran off with a creature like Klaus. She didn't know what she could say to get him to work with her, and it suddenly just seemed like too much. She couldn't stop the tears from pooling in her eyes as she pleaded with him.

"I will do everything I can to get your daughter back, but this is bigger than you, me, or even her. There is so much that I need to do to keep everyone safe, and I need you to not fight me. I need all the help I can get. I just… I need you to have patience and trust that you will have the chance to get your daughter back again."

Caroline wasn't sure what it was that convinced Jonas to listen to her, or if he was just playing along, but she was willing to go with it for now. Suddenly, she was just so very tired.

"Soon enough, we'll have the chance to see about your daughter. We have a werewolf, a vampire, the doppelgänger, and we've just recently located the moonstone."

Standing up, she looked at Elijah and then Alaric and said she was ready to go home. The others seemed to understand that she wasn't in the mood to answer any questions and quickly dispersed. Alaric, however, didn't seem to get the message that she wasn't in the mood for conversation; he questioned her from the backseat.

"I'm assuming that, now that you've located the moonstone, you have also planned for where all the sacrifices are going to recover after the ritual?"

With a sigh, Caroline resigned herself to the discussion.

"We've got that all covered. The only thing we have to do is to set up a time and a place to meet with Klaus and hope that the negotiations go well."

At this, she could hear a small huff of laughter from him.

"You took a bit of a risk relying on Maddox to pass on information about the moonstone. Last time, he left out a few key details and Ben got roughed up."

While Caroline gave a noncommittal hum, inside everything seized up and then went into overdrive. Alaric could have just _assumed_ she hadn't told Klaus about the moonstone herself. The bit about Ben and Maddox, however… only she, Bonnie, and Ben knew about that. Yet again, Caroline was left feeling like an idiot. She had forgotten all about Klaus' body-jacking tricks. She was so wrapped up in what was going on with her dad, making sure all the spells were in place, and worrying about whether John would make another move that she hadn't even really thought hard on _why_ Klaus might have switched to text-only communication.

As Elijah drove off, Caroline took a deep breath and started to speak.

"I lied when I told everyone we had just gotten rid of the last way to kill off an original vampire. I actually have a white oak stake. We also have access to spells that can put them out of commission without having to use the daggers dipped in white oak ash."

Turning to Alaric, no, Klaus, she didn't even try and put on a tough front.

"I'm telling you this so that you'll take me seriously when I say that, if Alaric isn't wearing that ring when you go back into your body and he dies, you will die. They can all forgive what you did to Ben, and they can forgive you killing off Isobel. They weren't really close to Elena, and she seems to be the center of the universe in this town. However, they wouldn't forgive you for killing Alaric."

Without waiting for an answer, she turned to go. Klaus, it seemed, wasn't done with the conversation. His tone, rather than angry, however, was amused.

"What gave it away, sweetheart?"

Stopping, but not looking back at him, she replied, "It's probably been a while since you've been drunk in a human body. Alcohol seems to have loosened your tongue."

His laughter followed her, but she really couldn't find it in her to join in. She had slipped up and nearly missed that Alaric was even in danger. The next day she was at Pearl's, after having made the rounds to let everyone know about the Alaric situation, discussing the entire mess with her and Elijah. Right as she was about to explain to Pearl, who was slightly angry at this point, _why_ she hadn't told her Maddox was Klaus' witch, Klaus himself made a call. And, this time, in his own body.

"I've just come from dropping off Alaric with Jenna. He looked a bit woozy from the spell and I had to remove the compulsion I had on her that made her think everything was just as normal in their relationship. I was thinking we should meet up, talk about breaking curses and such. How does Friday sound? Gives us enough time to get all our ducks in a row."

Almost on autopilot, Caroline agreed. She then left, saying goodbye to Pearl and Elijah, calling Bonnie even before she cleared the door.

Elijah watched her leave, still not over the slight bit of almost longing hearing his brother's voice over the phone brought him. Looking over, he noticed that Pearl's anger seemed to have transformed into worry.

"Are you concerned about what my brother will do to Ms. Forbes?"

With a quick blink, Pearl seemed to pull herself out of her thoughts.

"Strangely, I have complete faith that Caroline will find a way to convince Klaus to go along with her plan. The problem is, Caroline plans on being one of the sacrifices and I'm not sure I have the faith in her witches that she does."

The news came as a shock to Elijah. Though, even knowing Caroline for as short of a time as he had, he should have seen this coming. She was a good leader from what he had seen, and one who didn't seem willing to ask others to do what she refused to do. 

As he drove back toward the lovely bed and breakfast he had been staying in, it occurred to him that he could stop this. Logically, there was no reason to stop it. After all, as amusing and beautiful as he found both the Forbes women, they were ultimately nothing to him. However, he couldn't forget the look on Elizabeth's face as she confessed that she might not be able to protect her daughter. Perhaps he was a sentimental old fool, but what could it hurt to intervene? Quickly deciding that appealing to Elizabeth would do no good, as she probably couldn't change her daughter's mind, he headed toward the house Maddox had bought. If he knew his brother, that's where he would be found.

Once he neared the door of the witch's home, he could hear the sounds of sex and his brother's unmistakable voice giving instructions. Rolling his eyes –of course his brother would celebrate the return to his own body with sex—Elijah gave three solid knocks and waited. It didn't take long for Maddox to open the door wearing nothing but a pair of unbuttoned slacks and smelling of his brother and an unidentified female.

"Do let Klaus know his brother is here to see him."

A quick order from wherever Klaus was and Maddox invited him in. He was just coming up to the kitchen island when Klaus came out of a back room dressed in nothing more than his necklaces and unbuttoned jeans. Nearing Maddox, Klaus grabbed the witch by the back of his neck and pulled him in for a kiss. Pulling back, he pushed the other man in the direction he had just come from.

"Go finish Greta up for me, mate."

Turning toward Elijah, he gave a mischievous grin and continued, "Best not to leave a powerful lady wanting."

Unless Klaus had been dealing with two women named Greta, he could only assume that he was referring to Jonas' daughter. That would be no on the kidnapping theory, then. 

Elijah waited patiently as Klaus retrieved two tumblers and a decanter of what smelled like bourbon and joined him at the island. After he poured both glasses, he handed one to Elijah and remained almost uncomfortably close. The smell of sex and the two witches coming off him strongly. 

"Now what brings you here, brother? Have you missed me so much?"

It was the same teasing voice he had always used. The one that had led to far too many evenings involving the kind of behavior even Kol and Rebekah would have found depraved. After all, they were family, and some taboos never left them. Something must have shown on his face, because Klaus tilted his head, staring intently.

"Why so glum, brother? I'm about to have everything I want, and you'll be reunited with our siblings? Of course, I'll have to be careful when dealing with Caroline. She's already informed me that they have a white oak stake still in their possession and the witches have a way of taking me down even without it."

Here, Elijah saw an opportunity. Perhaps his brother wouldn't want to risk having to deal with the witches without the buffer of Caroline there for him.

"That is, of course, assuming she survives the ritual. The witches' spell to bring back the sacrifices may not work, after all."

Klaus froze. Elijah highly doubted that he had not taken into consideration that the spell might not work, so it was obvious that his brother had been unaware of Caroline's plan to play the part of vampire sacrifice. Setting down his glass, Klaus took out his phone even as he yelled out to Maddox.

"Maddox, head to the Salvatore's boarding house. Bring Damon Salvatore's desiccated body here. I have plans for it."

Taking a deep breath, his expression going from determined to smiling in the blink of an eye, Klaus brought his phone up to his ear, and waited as it rang. Elijah could clearly hear Caroline answer the phone, any traces of her earlier frustration with herself no longer discernable in her voice.

"Hello, love. Slight change of plans. How about you give me half an hour, and then head over to Maddox's. There's no time like the present for negotiations, right?"

Elijah heard her agree before his brother said his goodbyes and turned a grin on his brother.                                  

"Luckily, I had a back-up in mind in case things went south. Now, dear brother, are you going to stand by my side during this meeting, where you always should have been?"

It was so easy to fall back into the role of his brother's right hand. So many centuries spent chasing after a way to break Klaus' curse, it was almost like second nature to him. He didn't even hesitate to follow Klaus back into his room and pick out clothes for him, not even pretending to be annoyed by the indulgent grin his brother gave him. It felt like home.

Perhaps, after so long, Klaus had somehow marked him so that everyone who saw him knew, at least in the back of their mind, that he belonged with his brother. That would explain why, when he opened the door to let Caroline in, she barely even batted an eye.

"Ah, Caroline. So good to finally see you in person. Well, with my own eyes, that is."

And, just like that, all of her attention was on Klaus. This, too, felt like home.


	19. No Regrets, No Looking Back

Caroline really wasn't surprised to see Elijah opening the door. Even though he had originally showed up in Mystic Falls intent on killing his brother, he hadn't been able to follow through the first time around either. Be it through leverage or the simple fact that they were family, Klaus always seemed to be able to bring his siblings over to his side.

She was pulled from her musings by the sound of Klaus' voice welcoming her. She had thought she was prepared. After all, she'd heard his voice countless times since Ben's near-death. She was even growing used to the edge in it that had never been directed at her before she came back. Part her, however, still expected to see the hybrid who had promised to be her last love. The creature greeting her was most definitely _not_ that Klaus.

The vampire rising from the couch was colder and had a much crueler look in his eyes. She was well aware that the Klaus she had known could easily have turned this look on anyone else. Maybe, if she searched her memory, she could remember him looking at her like this the first time they had met, right before he made Tyler into a hybrid. The small kernel of hope she hadn't even known she nursed within her died with the realization that there was no trace of the hybrid who had sworn to be her last love in the creature before her.

"You look as if you were expecting someone else, love."

His look was amused and more than a bit smug. He might not be the Klaus she was used to dealing with, but she would not let him get the upper hand. If you wanted things to go your way, you had to establish dominance –or, at the very least, manage to appear not to be intimidated—early on.

"To be honest, I was expecting someone taller, better dressed, and slightly older-looking. You don't even have a mustache to twirl, and I thought those came standard in the villain welcome package."

In a blink he was suddenly in her right in front of her. To be honest, she had actually been expecting a hand around her throat, not just the glare. Anticipating his lashing out at her comment kept her from screaming or trying to get away. As it was, it took all of her years of practice putting on a good front at community events to stop her terror from showing.

"You went to all this trouble to set up negotiations with me, yet you don't really seem to know who you are dealing with."

Every fiber of her being was demanding she find a way to calm his temper, but her plan depended on him believing she was in complete control. Oddly enough, seeing Elijah out of the corner of her eye, looking like he was poised to step in, helped her keep calm.

"I know exactly who you are. You're the hybrid who can't access his werewolf side and needs a doppelgänger, a moonstone, a werewolf, and a vampire to change that. What you don't realize yet is that I'm the _only_ one who can deliver all of that to you with no fuss and at a very reasonable cost."

Caroline knew it was a risk to reveal how much she knew when he was so close and so angry but, at the last minute, she decided that being as honest as possible up front would take her farther with Klaus than playing coy would. She mentally shook off the image of a certain drawing with the inscription thanking her for her honesty. It wouldn't do her any good to confuse this Klaus with the one she had once known.

She wasn't sure if Elijah was genuinely curious or if he was just trying to defuse the situation when he coolly asked, "Would this be more information from your dead witch?"

As Klaus casually walked back toward the couch, his manner deceptively calm, Caroline got a look at Elijah and found she was wrong. He wasn't curious, nor had he been trying to divert his brother's anger. He was trying to see if she was a threat to Klaus. As long as the both of them were there, she couldn't let her guard down for a second or else she would end up dead.

"Actually, yes. She's learned that Silas' followers plan to awaken him. She's also aware that Silas has a plan to use Klaus' need to have his curse broken and create hybrids somehow. She wants to make sure he _can't_ use that against Klaus to get what he wants."

Caroline felt a frisson of irritation at the sound of both Elijah and Klaus's mocking chuckles.

"Dear girl, Silas is nothing but a fairytale."

Caroline couldn't stop her eyebrows from rising at this coming from Elijah of all people.

"And so are the original vampires. Just a bedtime story told to the freshly turned to keep them from thinking they're invincible."

At this, they both seemed slightly more inclined to listen to her. She looked toward Klaus, though she remained acutely aware of Elijah.

"You don't have to believe in Silas, that's not important to us. But I've got information on things you want, Klaus. Things you don't even know you're going to want yet. I'm planning on making sure you get those things, but nothing in this world is free."

With that, Klaus' eyes lit up and he leaned forward with his elbows on his knees.

"And so we begin negotiations!"

He gestured toward the high-backed chair across from him and, as Caroline moved to sit down, she was conscious of both Elijah moving to take a seat by Klaus and movement in the doorway toward what she knew was Maddox's room. However, it was a different witch that entered. While she had never seen the woman, she felt pretty secure in her guess that it was Greta now walking up to stand behind where Klaus was seated. Unable to stop herself, she addressed her.

"Your father and Luka wanted me to tell you they miss you and send their love."

Caroline enjoyed the fact that Greta was visibly thrown by her comment, but she was quickly distracted from the sight by Klaus' chuckle.

"I can see there's no need to introduce my witch. Greta, dear…"

Before he could continue, he was interrupted by the vibrating of his phone. His amused expression quickly fell as he replied. When he looked up at Caroline once again, she could see that whatever message he had received could possibly spell trouble for her. The saccharine in his tone did nothing to reassure her.

"Caroline, sweetheart, what ever happened to that nasty little vampire your lot had desiccating away in Stefan's basement?"

Caroline felt a sense of relief at his question. On a hunch, she had convinced Stefan and Bonnie to hide Damon's body when Klaus had suddenly moved up their meeting. Of course, she had no answer for Stefan when he'd asked what use Klaus would have for his brother, but he'd complied anyway. Now, to find a way to lie to a hybrid who would probably know she was lying without pissing him off.

"Stefan found out about my visit to his brother. He's not really convinced that I won't decide to stake him some day, so he's hidden him from me. Of course, I'm going to find him again, because I do have plans that involve him."

Klaus' chuckle and the flash of his dimples reassured Caroline that, while he probably didn't buy her obvious lie, he was still more amused than angry with her.

"We'll talk about your ideas for who should be the sacrifices later. For now, explain to me why I shouldn't just grab up my doppelgänger and complete the ritual without any negotiations? _I'm_ not the one who needs her alive afterward."

With a small internal prayer to whoever watched out for baby vampires in over their heads, Caroline gave him a small and serene smile.

"Of course you need her alive. After all, you do need her to break the secondary curse, and I doubt you want to wait with the hope that another doppelgänger will pop up."

Although she spoke as though everyone knew there was a secondary curse, she was well aware that she had just caught him by surprise. First, she schooled her features into an expression of mild surprise, and then gave an indulgent smile. If the Klaus she once knew could see her now, he'd probably be enjoying the show she was putting on. Mentally pushing back thoughts of a Klaus who no longer existed, she focused on the moment.

"The witch who repressed your werewolf half apparently planned for the possibility of you breaking that curse. The secondary curse insures that you won't be able to make hybrids without doppelgänger blood. And what's the point of being the original hybrid if you can't make more?"

While he was initially shocked, he quickly recovered and was giving her a very assessing look. Elijah, apparently, decided that it was time for him to step in.

"And we should just take your word for this?"

Luckily, she had been expecting doubts.

"You and Klaus can have Maddox, Greta, and her family all look into it. The curse is very real."

Even before she could look back at him, Klaus was questioning her again. She _really_ wished she didn't have to deal with them both right now.

"Assuming there is a secondary curse, again, what's to stop me from simply taking Elena and having my witches break it?"

Maintaining a serene smile –and wasn't that getting harder the longer this took? —she answered, "Convenience."

At the questioning look she got from both brothers, Caroline continued, "If you take Elena, you'll have to wait at least another month, probably more, before you can break the initial curse while bringing Elena back _and_ coming up with a way to break the secondary curse. If you make a deal with us, we already have a way to do both without you having to wait."

The smirk Klaus sent her way was amused, as though they were playing an interesting game instead of bargaining for lives.

"And why should I let the others live as well?"

She got the feeling that he had already decided to go along with at least part of the plan, but that he was enjoying the process. It was definitely something the version of him she had known would do.

"Elena won't go along with it if the others don't live," –a blatant lie since Elena, as much as Caroline loved her, didn't really extend her compassion to perfect strangers— "and we won't force her. Given that we have more than one way to kill or incapacitate you if you try, you forcing her isn't an option either."

The last was said not as a threat, but more like she was going over something they both knew for the sake of formality. Which, if she really thought about it, was what was going on.

The entire time she and Klaus were talking, Caroline had been aware of Greta in the background, chanting in a language she didn't know. Now, the witch came forward and, when Klaus looked toward her, gave a subtle nod of her head. Caroline could only assume that she had been looking into her claims.

"So, then, your witches do their spell, and then after the curse is broken I take off with Elena to make my hybrids?"

His tone clearly showed that he didn't believe that was the way she wanted it to go and he was just waiting for her to explain herself. However, she wasn't really ready for that.

"That's a negotiation for another time. Right now, we're just concerned about the here and now. Do you agree to my plan?"

Giving a show of thinking it over, Klaus leaned back in his seat. Then, with an indulgent smile, he answered, "Yes. With the small caveat that you're not the vampire used in the ritual."

Caroline hadn't seen this coming. If it had been the Klaus that once was, or even Elijah now, she could understand it. However, she hadn't prepared for this. She could only hope that this wasn't a deal breaker for him.

"That's not negotiable. I've got everything planned out. If you're worried about the spell not working for some reason, the Bennetts can supply a copy of it to your witches to look over."

What Caroline didn't say was that it would be a modified copy of the spell. There are some things that no one besides her, Bonnie, and Sheila needed to know beforehand. Klaus seemed to be somewhat satisfied by her assurance.

"It appears, Caroline, that we have a deal. Perhaps a drink to celebrate?"

Relief rushed through her. So far, everything was going relatively smoothly. Now, it was time to possibly rock the boat.

"Actually, that was just the first deal."

Klaus stopped midway to standing and sent her a surprised look.

"The first of how many, sweetheart?"

Praying that she managed to do this without pissing him off, she gave a large grin and said, "Just three for today."

Looking partly resigned and partly curious, he settled back down and gestured for her to continue.

"Part two. The dagger that you wanted me to use on Elijah? I'm going to need all of the others."

As a cold mask settled over his face, Caroline pulled out her phone, a picture of Mikael already displayed when she unlocked her screen. Holding it up so that he could clearly see the image, she continued.

"In exchange, we take you to this desiccated vampire who I've been assured you really want to get your hands on."

For a few seconds she could see a strange mixture of emotions pass through his eyes, too fast for her to identify. As he took the phone from her hand, his expression settled into simple curiosity.

"Your work, then?"

With a somewhat proud smile, she corrected him, "No, actually. About fifteen years ago, he came after Elena. A Bennett witch did this."

While she might not care for Abby too much –memories of the woman leaving Bonnie still made her hurt for her friend – she was very much impressed that the woman had gone up against someone she thought unstoppable with magic she was probably loath to use.

After watching Klaus stare at the picture for a few moments, Elijah had a question for Caroline.

"What exactly do you plan to do with the daggers, should we agree?"

A petty part of Caroline wondered if Elijah actually thought he had a say in any of this. Of course, she wasn't really familiar with their relationship; It was possible that Elijah wasn't really Klaus' butt monkey, regardless of how much it seemed like he was. She did her best not to let her opinion of him show.

"It's the witches that want them. I've been assured in no uncertain terms that they will _not_ be used against your family."

While Elijah looked ready to question her further, Klaus quickly interrupted.

"I'll text you my new address soon. You and your witches can come pick up the daggers I have then. However, you'll have to wait until you take me to Mikael in order to get the one he has. Now, the third deal?"

She had actually expected that one to take far more convincing. Apparently, she was still underestimating how much his fear of his father ruled him. She quickly put that to the back of her mind as she focused on Klaus as he slowly handed her phone back. It was a pity he was no longer feeling amused since this part could be the one with which she would most need that indulgent mood from him.

"I have information about someone who is planning to kill you and your siblings. It's a very credible enemy who is more than capable of succeeding. Of course, if you knew about the plan, it would be very easy for you to stop them in their tracks. If you agree to let Katherine go, free and clear, I'll let you know who it is."

Klaus _definitely_ didn't look amused when she finished. In fact, he looked very nearly pissed.

"I would believe you, Caroline, save for the fact that you've already expressed your need for me to remain alive."

Knowing she was in danger of crossing a line with him, Caroline still felt the need to continue. She wasn't sure why. It wasn't as though she and Katherine liked each other too much. In fact, she was pretty sure that Katherine would throw her under the bus without hesitation. However, she had already come this far.

"We can easily hold off this person without you even knowing who it is. Then, when we no longer need you, we can simply stop delaying the inevitable."

She was lying, of course. There was no way she would let Klaus die knowing that his death meant hers. However, he didn't need to know that. When he continued to stare at her, Caroline decided that it was smart make a hasty exit.

"I've given you a lot to think about. Take your time deciding, it's not like we're getter any older."

She had made it to the door and even had her hand on the knob when his voice stopped her.

"She stays wherever she is hidden until the ritual is over. I don't see or hear from her at all. Now, will I have to find wherever she's being kept in order to issue the pardon, or will your word be enough for her?"

When she turned to face him, his expression clearly said that he wasn't sure if he'd done the right thing with this gamble. Elijah's expression was pure shock. Trying to make it as painless as possible, Caroline held up her phone once again and told him that a quick video of him would be enough. He managed to look like he had in no way been pressured or bribed to set Katherine free during the recording. After she stopped it, however, he looked at her expectantly, so she wasted no time in deliver on her end.

"Your mother has a couple of ways she's connected to the world. She has plans to come back and kill you and all your siblings. We'll be able to hold her off for a while, but it would be best if you did something on your end since you have her body. Again, you can have your witches look into it if you want."

Two days later, and Klaus was still internally reeling from the news that his mother was actively seeking his death. However, what occupied his mind now, as he brooded in one of the back rooms and waited for Caroline and her witches to show up, was how much she actually knew. Until she had informed him of his mother's plot, he wouldn't have guessed she was aware of the identity of the witch who cursed him. If she was also aware of how his mother died, that _he_ was the one to kill her and _not_ Mikael as he'd told his siblings, would she use it against him?

He was distracted from his thoughts by the sound of Kol and Rebekah already squabbling. All three of his daggered siblings had made to attack him as soon as they had regained consciousness. Elijah had just barely been able to stop them. His brother's explanation of the current situation had quickly dissolved into a heated discussion regarding their plans to stay or abandon Klaus all together. While he had feigned disinterest and left, there was a knot of unease settling deep in his gut at the thought of his family leaving him. 

He had just slouched lower into his chair in front of the empty fireplace and raised a glass of bourbon to his lips when he heard the sound of a vehicle pulling up in front of his new home. Setting down the glass as he stood, he quickly straightened his clothing and strode toward the front of the house, doing his best to appear unaffected by his siblings' discussion. As he entered the foyer, a few of the vampires he had used to staff his home were leading in Caroline, who looked as if she were dressed for a day of shopping with an over-large bag hanging from her elbow; she was accompanied by the two Bennett witches. Seeing Caroline reminded him that he would soon have his curse broken and his father dead. The rest he could figure out.

Just as he stepped close to Caroline, he felt another vampire come up beside him. Looking to the side, he saw that it was one of his servants carrying the tray bearing the three daggers he'd pulled from his siblings just this morning.

Gesturing toward the tray and giving her a charming smile, he said "Well then, love, here are the daggers I promised."

At this the witches accompanying Caroline both stepped forward. The grandmother was holding a box that looked to be older than she was. Seeming to sense the question forming on the tip of his tongue, Caroline spoke.

"To reassure you that we won't be secretly using these against your family, we're going to seal them in this box so that it takes both you and Sheila to open it."

While she was speaking, Caroline was beginning to transfer the daggers into the lined box. Before she could transfer the last of his dagger in though, she was stopped by the sound of Finn's voice.

"Not Klaus."

Klaus could hear the rustle of clothing as what he assumed to be everyone turned to stare at his eldest brother. Klaus himself, however, remained looking at the box as he listened.

"We can't trust that he won't convince the witch to open the box with him so that he can dagger any one of us again."

Klaus could hear both Kol and Rebekah chiming in with their agreement. Although Elijah remained silent, he was aware his brother agreed with the others. To be honest, he couldn't blame them. He had already started trying to come up with different arguments to get at least one dagger back. His attention was brought back to the present by the sound of Finn striding toward them.

"I'll be the one involved in place of Klaus."

Automatically, Klaus moved to argue against this. Out of all his siblings, he knew that Finn was the most likely to leave and _never_ return. Although they might have never been close, the thought left a cold pit of fear in Klaus' stomach. He was barely aware of his own argument, let alone what Finn was saying in return. He could feel the air around them growing more and more tense and was aware that it could come to blows, but he couldn't seem to stop himself.

"Both!"

The near frantic yell silenced them both as they turned to Caroline. Her eyes were opened wide and she was wearing a very strained smile.

"There's absolutely no reason why we can't key the lock to both of you. No need to fight about it."

"I agree. Once we have all the daggers, then both Klaus and Finn can be used to lock them away."

Having finished his pronouncement, Elijah strode toward Caroline, a charming smile on his face and his eyes locked on hers. Klaus rankled a bit at that, but Caroline didn't appear to actually be charmed by his brother. As petty as it was, that did please him.

"I understand it's a terrible breach of etiquette to return a gift, but I was hoping you would forgive me."

At this, Elijah produced the dagger Caroline had given him –the very same one Klaus had _arranged_ to be buried in his brother's heart— from lord only knows where and handed it over. Though Caroline smiled politely, she didn't wear anything resembling a besotted expression. He knew there were more than a few reasons he liked the girl. Feeling his brother had monopolized more than enough of her time, Klaus decided to take control of the conversation.

"The witches are getting the daggers, for whatever purpose, and I'm getting the location of a powerful and very desiccated enemy. I do have to wonder how you managed to negotiate a deal where _you_ received nothing."

Though his tone was a vague approximation of impressed, Caroline's look assured him that she knew he suspected that she was getting something out of it. Her next words only confirmed it.

"Well…" the word was drawn out and her tone and expression contained just a hint of teasing. He couldn't help but return her slightly flirtatious smile even as he waited for the catch. "While I don't have any use for the daggers, I do need to speak with Rebekah and Kol. They have information I need."

Part of him was pleased that Caroline seemed to get the most out of every move she made. Life was far more interesting with intelligent people who presented a challenge without needing to resort to violence or outright threats. He was deliberately choosing to ignore that she had threatened him over the potential death of the laughable vampire hunter.

Elijah, however, seemed less enthralled and more suspicious, if one could judge by the cold way he said "Silas," as if it were less a question than a statement.

Before Caroline could answer, Klaus found himself staring at the back of Kol's head. As he quickly maneuvered himself to a position where he could attempt to hold his brother back should the need arise, he caught sight of Caroline's face and the look on it which was so very similar to the one she had worn when he had done the same to her just two short days ago. He did have to give her credit, she had an excellent poker face when the need arose.

"Tell me, darling, are you planning to wake Silas up? Perhaps he's promised you the return of a loved one?"

As if a vampire roughly sixty times her age wasn't currently standing nose to nose with her, Caroline answered in a conversational tone, "I do plan on waking him up. But only long enough to shove the cure to immortality down his throat and rip out his heart."

He could feel the tension in Kol's body dissipate as his brother tilted his head. Though it was obvious he wanted her to expand on that explanation, Caroline had clearly finished the conversation for now.

"We can talk about that, and the information I need from your sister, later. For now," at this point, she reached into her purse and pulled out a stake that haunted more of his nightmares than he cared to admit before holding it out to him and continuing, "I think it's time for a field trip!"

It had taken a few moments to convince Elijah to stay back with the others, but eventually he'd seen reason. After that it was a four-hour drive to North Carolina. The drive wasn't made entirely in silence, however. They were a short distance from their destination when Caroline, who was in the passenger's seat beside him staring out the window, began to talk about what would happen _after_ the ritual.

"One of the ways your mother is going to try and kill you is through Finn."

At this, she turned and looked at Klaus.

"He wants to die, and he wants all of you to die with him. While you may be able to stop your mother from coming back, anyone else could still use him against you. You need to give him something that makes him want to live more than he wants your death."

While he hadn't even thought of the possibility that any of his siblings would wish to die, let alone wish the whole family to die, it didn't take more than a moment for the solution to present itself. Finn was, after all, the only one of them who had managed to find real love while a vampire, and she was still around waiting for him. He didn't have time to respond before Caroline, apparently confident he would find a solution to the Finn situation, continued onto another matter.

"Also, you do know that when you make hybrids there'll be a sire bond, right?"

It was actually something Klaus had been counting on. With a smile, he responded "That's half the point in making them, love. They will be loyal without fail."

She didn't return his smile.

"Sire bonds can be broken. In fact, Silas' followers are counting on that and are planning to wait until you make enough hybrids, turn them against you, and then set you up to slaughter them."

Since Caroline seemed to be in a talkative mood, Klaus decided now would be a good time to get as many answers as possible.

"Why would Silas' followers be so interested in my hybrids and me killing them?"

He hadn't believed it possible, but Caroline's expression seemed to get even more serious.

"They want to use the sacrifice of the hybrids, along with two other sacrifices, to help Silas drop the veil between our world and the supernatural afterlife." She continued on, answering the question he hadn't asked yet, "We want them to think that's still possible so that they'll show up here and we can sabotage the competition and not worry about them getting to Silas first."

He had almost forgotten they had company, but the Bennett witch spoke up from the back and reminded him.

"It's an unnecessary precaution since they don't have a descendant of Qetsiyah to open the tomb for them. However, they do have an artifact that we need, so it's better to kill two birds with one stone."

Klaus found himself intrigued.

"And do _we_ have one of her decedents, then?"

Sheila's eyes met his in the review mirror, though she remained silent. It didn't take that far of a leap to assume that the Bennetts were the witches they needed. Deciding not to press the issue, Klaus came back to the discussion about the sire bond with his hybrids.

"Since you seem to have it all figure out, Caroline, how are we going to prevent Silas' followers from using the hybrids against me?" 

The half smirk she sent him lacked smugness. It was more like she was resigned to an argument he didn't realize was coming.

"You're going to help the hybrids break the bond before anyone ever shows up."

He would never admit to it, but his mind went completely blank for a moment. Caroline apparently took his silence as permission to continue.

"You'll take me along with you on the search for werewolf packs and I will negotiate a deal where you get what you want, loyal hybrids, and the packs get what they need, protection from those who wish to see them all dead."

Klaus could feel his fangs itching to drop and his hands tightening on the wheel as he fought to remind himself that he needed the vampire beside him alive more than he needed to kill her for her insolence.

"Tell me, _dear Caroline_ , why I should agree to such a thing."

Caroline's expression remained resigned, but it was Sheila who answered him.

"You'll agree, hybrid, because you want to be able to make more hybrids beyond Elena's lifetime. We can enable you to do so without having to use a doppelgänger's blood. However, we'll only agree to do the spell if you agree to go along with our plan."

Before he could reply, Caroline pointed out the front window toward a cemetery they were nearing.

"We're here. We'll worry about the deals we've already made for now and you can think about our proposition after."

Putting all thoughts of the future to the back of his mind, Klaus prepared himself for what as to come. He hated that there were still traces of fear at the thought of being in the same room as his father. As the witch released the spell and Caroline opened the doors, Klaus did his best to keep his breathing even and hide his turmoil. Klaus pushed off the lid of the tomb and stared down Mikael's open eyes. For all the vampire's immobility, he could still _feel_ the hatred radiating off of him.

He quickly searched the monster who had hunted him and, once found the dagger he owed Caroline, pocketed it. With a smirk, Klaus took the stake from the back waistband of his jeans where he had it stored and twirled it in front of his father. He reveled in the thrill the trace of fear in the old man's eyes gave him.

"You know, perhaps I should have brought the family to see this. Hell, I could still drag you back home and let them witness this. I could invite some of the more powerful creatures I know, let them see that I _always_ take care of the threats against me and those I care for."

Klaus was just getting into it when Caroline's tired voice interrupted him.

"If you do that, if you give this moment that much importance, he's going to haunt you forever. Your existence will always be divided into before and after Mikael's death. You don't have to forgive him and you don't have to make peace with him. Just don't give him any more power. Let him go. Eliminate him like you would any other _small_ threat and he will be a footnote in your history, not the focus of it."

Without waiting for his reaction, she exited the tomb, taking Sheila with her. Klaus was left staring at his father with a choice to make. Perhaps the girl had a point. After all, what greater punishment could he deliver to his tormentor than to have him be forgotten. With no fanfare and no further dramatics, he easily pushed the white oak stake that had been meant for his heart into Mikael's and then watched as the old man went up in flames.

"Goodbye, father."

When he exited the tomb he found Caroline and Sheila waiting for him just outside the tomb. The look Caroline sent him was a strange mixture of pride and understanding. It was… unexpected. He silently handed her the dagger before walking towards the vehicle, aware of the both of them following him. As he came to the driver's side of the car and looked over the roof to where Caroline was now standing on the other side, he came to a small realization.

"You knew he was my father."

A small nod of Caroline's head was all the confirmation he needed. Taking a deep breath, Klaus decided to do something he hadn't done in nearly a thousand years. He made the choice to trust someone.

"Let my witches look over the spell. If it checks out, I'll do things your way."


	20. I Could Live with Dyin' Tonight

Caroline had no time to rest after she, Klaus, and Sheila got back to Mystic Falls. They had made it back to the Mikaelson's home –she couldn't help but refer to it as a mansion in her mind—and she had her hand on the driver side door handle when suddenly there was a vampire beside her where there hadn't been one before. She allowed herself to take a deep breath and tried to ignore how ragged it sounded before she turned and looked at Kol.

"I take it you've waited long enough for your explanation?"

His smile was almost friendly, but with too much… chaos in it. He wasn't someone that Caroline would normally trust, but she really didn't have a choice. She had made a promise, after all. She waved off Sheila's concerned look and got into the car. Hopefully, Kol was a bit more stable than he first appeared.

Twenty minutes later they sat in Caroline's car across from the Grill as she made the burger she had ordered quickly disappear. At Kol's impatient sigh –his third in as many minutes, and she honestly hadn't expected him to be this patient—Caroline stopped chewing and looked at him. She swallowed her bite and did the best she could to defend herself.

"I was stuck in a car for eight hours with Bonnie's Grams and your brother Klaus. There was no stopping for food. And, yes, I know I technically don't _need_ to eat, but I'm still trying to figure out how to say what I need to without sounding totally insane. Please just give me a minute, here!"

One of these days, Caroline figured her lack of brain to mouth filter in stressful situations would get her hurt, if not killed. Kol was looking at her like he was thinking of ripping out her heart, so she gave him her best puppy dog eyes and hoped for the best. Apparently, there was something in the Mikaelson gene pool that had a fondness for cute little blonde baby vampires, because he soon relaxed against the back of his seat and waited.

Finally, the burger was finished, her hands thoroughly wiped with a paper napkin, and she couldn't put it off any longer. This could go so very, very wrong. Taking a deep breath, Caroline jumped right into the deep end.

"A large group of dead witches sent me back in time about two years to stop Silas from waking up and potentially raining down supernatural hell on the world as well as killing my best friend."

Taking a moment, Caroline decided to be totally honest and went with, "Okay, _I_ came back just to save my friend, _they_ sent me back to stop Silas."

Looking over at Kol, she could see he was nearly ready to laugh and didn't believe her. However, he apparently decided to humor her a bit.

"And these witches just decided that sending back a baby vampire was the best shot they had?"

While she knew he was nowhere close to believing her, she kept going, hoping that she could convince him.

"Well, they weren't going to send me at first. I did… _kind_ of kill twelve of them which helped Silas get that much closer to dropping the veil between worlds," When she saw that he was slowly going from amused to _not_ amused, she held up a finger, silently begging for a moment and rushed on, " _which_ I did to save my friend who they were about to kill. Those witches were going to actually stop the spell that was sending me back, but you convinced them that I wouldn't fuck up."

His voice was cold when he asked, "And why would I do that, darling?"

And here was where she started to tread on _really_ dangerous ground.

"We had a deal. You would convince the witches to help my friend send me back, and I'd let you in on all our plans to stop Silas, deliver a message to you, as well as stop you from…" Looking straight ahead, she took a deep breath and finished, "You didn't want to die."

At this Kol finally laughed.

"I'm an original, Caroline. Immortal."

A spark of anger made Caroline a bit reckless and she turned and looked at Kol, barely keeping her fangs in check as she spat out, "Unless a hunter drives a white oak stake through your heart. Then you end up a crispy critter in someone's kitchen while your brother watches, unable to even get in the house."

Kol was speechless in his shock, and Caroline took the opportunity to continue on with her one ace in the hole.

"Bonnie was dead when she came up with the idea for the spell to send me back. You were already dead, too. There was a spell or something that made it easy for her to pop into my dreams and you just kind of showed up uninvited somehow, and that's when we made our deal. You figured it would be a bit _difficult_ to convince you that my story was true, so you sent me back with a message. Something supposedly only you would know."

Taking a deep breath, Caroline reached forward and gripped the steering wheel to prepare herself. 

"When your family was still human, you had a younger brother named Henrik. He came to you one day wanting to see the wolves change. You were afraid, of course, but you didn't want him to know it. You told him to stop bugging you and go ask Klaus. You knew that, even though it was dangerous, Klaus wouldn't be able to refuse him."

She could _feel_ him go still with the first mention of Henrik's name and knew she was dangerously close to pushing him over the edge. However, even this he could potentially say she got from someone else. Taking another shaky breath, Caroline continued on and hoped he'd be understanding.

"You felt guilty right after, of course. You blamed yourself for his death almost as much as Klaus did. You didn't tell anyone, though. When you were turned into a vampire, the guilt only intensified. In fact, in the thousand years since, it's the _only_ thing you've ever felt guilty about. It got so bad that you couldn't be around Klaus, because that only brought the guilt to the front of your mind. It made you hate him more than a bit, even as you loved him, probably more than all the others."

As she was speaking, Caroline could feel what Kol had felt, at least to some degree. She had gotten a touch of that sensation when "remembering" the things Bonnie had left in her memories, but Kol's feelings were so strong, that Caroline was having trouble remember that they weren't hers. So much trouble, in fact, that she could feel tears rolling down her face. The words seemed to flow out of her and she couldn't stop them.

"It churns in your gut like acid. Makes you want to throw up if you look at him too long. If you drown yourself in the killing, even if he's right there beside you, it's possible to ignore it for a while. But it never lasts, and you're right back to feeling guilty. So guilty that you act up in ways you _know_ will get you daggered because part of you wants to be punished. Maybe the next time you wake up the guilt will be gone."

A sob worked its way out of her as Caroline fought to continue even though everything in her was screaming to stop.

"But it's never gone because you're not paying for what you did. You killed… Oh, God, Kol, you put this in my head! Please, just tell him. Just make it stop. Please."

There were no words left, only the tears and seemingly endless amounts of guilt and self-hatred. It took her a few minutes to calm herself enough to realize that she was actually being held awkwardly across the console by Kol. Almost as soon as she became aware of this, he quickly let her go, almost plastering himself against the passenger's side door.

"If you ever tell anyone I did that they won't believe you and I'll kill you very painfully. You know I won't feel guilty about it, either."

With a laugh, Caroline replied, "Okay. I won't tell anyone."

After taking a few moments to calm herself, she once again looked ahead through the windshield. It was easier than trying to look at Kol while reliving his memories.

"He loves you, you know." At his silence, Caroline continued on, "You didn't realize how much until you were dead and listening to him talk to your burned corpse. You watched part of him break as he called you an idiot for believing he'd ever set you up to be killed."

Caroline fought off the tears as she told Kol things he'd learned in the other time that she had only suspected.

"He told you that he would rather have all of you daggered and hating him then to have you leave him. He would never kill you, because then you would never come back to him. Even when Klaus found out Elijah betrayed him and told Mikael where he was, he couldn't bring himself to kill Elijah. He could only punish him by saying that he'd thrown you, Rebekah, and Finn into the ocean and that you were lost."

Suddenly, Caroline had another memory of Kol's pop to the front of her mind. Looking at him, she half told, have questioned, "You didn't believe Elijah sold him out. You thought there was something more to the story, that Klaus was wrong somehow."

Shaking her head slightly, trying to shake off the revelation, Caroline got back on track.

"You didn't realize how much he thought you hated him. All those times you couldn't face him because of the guilt, all those times you ran off, he thought it was because you hated him."

Seeing from the expression on his face that he believed her, Caroline decided they'd taken a far enough trip down memory lane for one night.

"So, I gave you the proof and delivered your message. That's half my end of the bargain. Sometime during the next week, I can show you all my notes and go over all our plans. Then you can decide how much you're going to help."

Caroline expected Kol to either leave then or demand a ride back home. Instead, he just sat there staring ahead silently for a few minutes. Finally, he turned to look at her.

"How many people know everything about your time travel adventures and your plans?"

Apparently, he wasn't willing to wait for the details. At this point, Caroline saw no reason to lie. And, much like with Katherine, she could feel relief at the thought of sharing her burdens with someone who she wasn't afraid would hold back if they thought she wasn't thinking clearly or that she had taken her eye off the big picture.

"My mom, Bonnie, and Sheila know everything about my time travel and my plans. If it concerns bringing down Silas, then they know."

Kol's eyebrows lifted at the last?

"Well, darling, I want to know _everything_. Every change you made, even down to deciding not to cut your hair."

Caroline couldn't help but bristle at that. With heavy sarcasm she asked, "So you want to know which boys I did and didn't date, if I decided against that last piece of cheesecake this time around, or if I decided to give the last season of Friday Night Lights a miss this time around?"

With an unrepentant grin, Kol leaned in and tapped her nose with his forefinger.

"For the next week, consider me your new best girlfriend and therapist all rolled into one. I want to know _everything_."

With a sigh, Caroline resigned herself to exposing her every secret to Kol. Part of her contemplated holding back, but a part of her was almost _eager_ to tell him. To be able to spill every personal change she'd made and possibly even talk about how _hard_ it was but how easy at the same time.

Three days later, as Caroline was down in the tomb they were keeping Katherine in talking to the older vampire, Bonnie sat outside on the hood of her friend's car. She had been there multiple times to help Caroline deliver blood and other supposedly necessary things. This time, however, she was asked to wait outside _and_ she had company. Elijah had invited himself along; neither protested. However, when he had started to follow her down the stairs, she had asked him to stay out and he hadn't put up a fight. That told Bonnie that he was easily listening in on whatever conversation Caroline and Katherine were having from right where he was.

Since he wasn't sharing with her, Bonnie was left to her own devices. She found herself contemplating the change in both Caroline and Klaus since he had killed Mikael. Caroline seemed more relaxed and sure of her plans, while Klaus seemed calmer. Also, Caroline had taken to spending a large amount of time with Kol. When she asked her why, Caroline told her that he was digging deep into their plans. While both she and her Grams hadn't been comfortable in Kol knowing so much, they both understood that Caroline had made a deal and didn't plan on going back on it, even _if_ Kol would never have known.

Of course, after every conversation with Kol, Caroline would come venting to her. Not because Kol had been too demanding or… _evil_ or anything. According to Caroline, he was oddly patient and kind. Not two words either of them would have previously thought of in relation to Kol. Klaus, however, appeared far less patient and tolerant than his brother. Nearly every meeting between Caroline and Kol was cut short by Klaus. A situation that, while Caroline obviously found it frustrating, Kol seemed to find highly amusing.

Bonnie was distracted from her memories by Caroline emerging up the stairs. Elijah wasted no time in confronting her, while Bonnie silently took the front passenger's seat. He could tag along uninvited all he wanted, but she sure as hell wouldn't be giving up her seat for him again.

"Whatever it is you're trusting Katherine to do, I urge you to reconsider. You don't know her. She will betray you."

Caroline barely spared him a glance, and Bonnie almost couldn't stop herself from snorting at his tone. Like Caroline would let _anyone_ influence her when she had already made up her mind.

"I am well aware what Katherine is capable of. With all due respect, it's my call to make."

Caroline sent him a pointed look with that last statement and Bonnie could see the muscle in Elijah's jaw ticking and his nostrils flaring. She remembered clearly how pissed Caroline had been when she had recounted finding out that Pearl had let Elijah know _Caroline_ was going to be the sacrifice. What had made her friend even more angry was that he'd decided to intervene. Apparently, she still wasn't over it. It didn't look like Elijah saw anything wrong with what he'd done. Elijah and Caroline didn't speak as Caroline started the car and drove off. Bonnie found the silence uncomfortably tense. 

In the four days after and even up to the time of the ritual, as far as Bonnie knew, they still hadn't spoken. However, the silence didn't stop Elijah from laying a comforting hand on Caroline's shoulder as he led her past where Stefan, Pearl, Anna, and his family were gathered. He continued to lead her to the altar where Mason and Elena already stood. All three looked nervous yet determined as they each drank from the small vials Grams had given them; all the while, Klaus looked on intently.

Oddly enough, he wasn't the only one keeping a close eye on everything. Perched on a low-hanging branch near the altar was Eric. Bonnie only knew it was him because the crow had cawed incessantly at Caroline until the vampire turned to look at him and gave him a small wave.

Unable to focus on anything save Caroline when the ritual began, Bonnie forgot all about Eric. She was sure that Mason and Elena could be recovered after the ritual. Caroline, however… She wasn't sure if she envied Caroline's mother for being forced to stay home or not. Yes, she was worrying at home, but at least she wouldn't have to witness her daughter's death. Her worry over Caroline eclipsed everything else and she only vaguely registered what was happening as Klaus ripped out Mason's heart and then fed the blood from it into the stone cauldron.

Her attention came into sharp focus as he approached Caroline. While she couldn't hear what was said, she could see the determination in her friend's face as she lifted Klaus' hand, along with the stake held in it, to her heart. She refused to contemplate what was behind the kiss he placed to Caroline's forehead as he drove the stake in. After, he took a moment to stare at Eric who was cawing in what she could only guess was grief. He then turned toward the third sacrifice.

While she cared deeply for Elena, she couldn't honestly say she even remembered how her friend died. After Caroline's death, her whole world went sort of fuzzy and out of focus. In fact, she couldn't remember much of anything until she saw Elijah pick up Caroline's body and head toward the vehicle he had come in.

"We'll take her, Elijah. There's no need to trouble yourself."

Pearl's voice was calm, but Bonnie could tell by her expression that she, like Bonnie herself, sensed something was wrong. That feeling only increased as she saw Mason and Elena being carried by two of Klaus' vampire minions. 

Elijah's voice brooked no argument as he replied, "We have a room prepared at our home for Caroline and the others to recover in. You are, of course, welcome to wait there for them to awaken."

It was clear that Elijah had every intention of taking Caroline away, with or without their cooperation. It didn't seem right to Bonnie to just _let_ it happen, and Pearl seemed to agree. However, even as she made to protest, Bonnie could hear the sound of bones cracking. She quickly turned and saw Klaus doubled over as if in pain.

"My brother is shifting even now. We should hurry unless you want to risk you and your friends becoming his next meal."

Over the next three days, Bonnie began to wish she had somehow gotten the three to Pearl's like they originally intended. It's not that Klaus' home wasn't beautiful, because it was, even with the continuing renovations. However, there had been some uncomfortable talks with Kol and Rebekah. Apparently, Caroline actually hadn't gotten a chance to talk to him about Silas or her exact plan to kill him. She also hadn't gotten a chance to tell Rebekah what exactly it was she needed from her. 

She, Liz, and Sheila had refused to answer their questions, however. It wasn't until Rebekah had said something about them never waking up and then spent five minutes writhing on the floor in agony from magic Bonnie had barely remembered casting while all the other vampires were magically held out of the room by Bonnie's grandmother that they said anything. They informed Klaus' siblings that the sacrifices _couldn't_ wake up until Klaus transformed back. It was the price they paid for using the excess magic given off by both the ritual and his transformations in order to power the restoration spell. It was also a part of the spell that they had made sure Klaus' witches hadn't seen just in case he tried to take advantage of it.

They _had_ informed Stefan, Jeremy, and Mason's pack of the delay in Elena and Mason waking up after Klaus had agreed to the deal, however. It was why a rotation of pack members silently stood vigil along with Stefan, Jeremy, and a very silent crow waiting for them to wake up without questioning what was going on.

Just when Bonnie began to wonder if Klaus planned to spend the rest of eternity as a wolf, she felt Caroline's hand began to twitch in hers. Even as Sheila and Liz rushed to the waking vampire's bedside, Bonnie heard Mason begin moaning. Her eyes widened as her gaze shot to Sheila's. Quickly, they moved everyone out save the wolves. 

While they had already warned the pack that Mason's waking would be extremely painful –he did, after all, have to regrow a heart which was too unnatural to _not_ hurt like hell— Sheila and Liz had decided that knowing would only cause the others to worry about what Elena would go through. Knowing how worked up his pain might get the others, they had also decided beforehand that it would be best to leave comforting him to his fellow werewolves. Besides, they had Caroline to take care of.

They had nearly all made it down the stairs accompanied by the sound of flapping wings and with Bonnie and a worryingly unstable Caroline bringing up the rear when Klaus and Elijah walked in the door. While Elijah looked as put together as always, Klaus looked like he had rolled around in the mud and dirt. Just as Klaus appeared ready to say something, Mason let out a tremendous scream. Even knowing what was going on, Bonnie couldn't stop herself from turning her head along with everyone else at the sound.

"Mason's heart. Damon ripped it out."

Caroline's voice was disturbingly soft and confused, as was her expression when Bonnie turned to look at her. It was as if she were trying to remember something important, but didn't know _why_ it was so important. For a moment, no one said anything until Klaus let out a small huff of amusement.

"No, love, it was me that ripped the werewolf's heart out. Remember, you were there?"

Only her mother, Bonnie, Sheila, and _possibly_ Kol knew that she was simply remembering another time. Caroline's expression went from confused to happy, though she looked as if she were only half aware of what was going in. She didn't even seem to react as Klaus suddenly went from being at the door to being on the step right below her.

"How did you get here so fast?"

Her question gave Klaus pause, and Bonnie watched as the pleasant confusion in his face was replaced by anger and something close to revulsion.

"How are you _human_?"

At this, Caroline seem to crumble. Gone was the self-assured person Bonnie was used to seeing. In her place was the painfully insecure and hurting girl she had only seen when Caroline was far too drunk to maintain her mask. It was so easy to forget that this was a part of her friend as well.

"God, how can you hate who I am so much?"

Klaus seemed to be at a loss on how to deal with this version of Caroline. Kol, having moved up to stand beside Klaus, looked just as confused. Caroline turned to Bonnie and continued on, looking ready to break down in tears.

"I'm inappropriate. I always say the wrong thing. And…"

Bonnie knew immediately that, mentally, Caroline was far from in the present. Bonnie grabbed hold of her, trying to maneuver her past Klaus who, in turn, grabbed Caroline by the arms, stopping their progress.

"Caroline…"

Before he could continue whatever he had planned to say, Caroline's eyes rolled back and her limbs began jerking. Klaus pulled her close and moved to lay her down on the floor, Kol moving to her side just behind Klaus, and Caroline's mother rushed to her other side. The entire time Bonnie, who had been effectively cut off from her friend, was franticly looking to her Grams, hoping the woman had some clue as to what to do next. They had known Caroline would be human when she first woke. They also knew they would have to give her vampire blood, or else the potion would permanently kill her. Elijah taking the sacrifices to the Mikaelson's home had worried them a bit, Bonnie had thought they would have more time.

She was too panicked by Caroline's impending death to fear for herself as Klaus bared his very much inhuman teeth at her and demanded furiously, "What is going on, witch?"

Thankfully Grams answered for her because she couldn't seem to find her voice or even string two words together.

"The spell is trying to return her to the way she was before you killed her. The problem is, it's trying to do so without any vampire blood in her system. We knew it would happen fast, but she said she had a plan."

Even as Grams, Klaus, and Elijah tried to figure out how to save Caroline, Bonnie watched her friend's mother hold her and sob out her name. Even as she felt hot tears spill down her cheeks and heard the frantic cawing from Eric, Bonnie began to feel herself detach. Was this how her friend would die; convulsing and foaming at the mouth as everyone around her panicked? 

No! This wasn't how it was supposed to be.


	21. You Need Someone to Leave a Light On

She stood outside the mansion and argued with herself over going in versus just running. While she technically _did_ owe Caroline for protecting her and getting Klaus to pardon her –the memory of him actually using that word in the video she received left a burning lump of bitterness and resentment in her stomach—what did that really mean? Katherine Pierce did not get where she was by putting her neck on the line for anyone who came along and helped her. Besides, it's not like anyone would know she abandoned Caroline. The baby vampire had made sure that she had a clear path to leave and never look back. She had never even made Katherine promise that she would show.

That manipulative bitch.

Even as she felt the tendrils of Caroline's reverse phycology closing in on her, she couldn't help but admire the girl. Caroline had pulled her in with her story, made her _want_ the baby vampire to win against the ancient witch, and then said 'yeah, you could totally bail if you want. I'll even make it easy and no one will ever know!' She really was a cunning little brat.

Katherine gave a rueful laugh, straightened her back, and strode to the mansion door, medical bag in hand, ready to play the hero. She opened the door onto a scene of near complete chaos. On the side-lines, looking on in seemingly detached interest, were Rebekah and someone she could only assume was the oldest of Klaus' brothers. As Katherine took in what they were watching, she hoped that she wasn't too late.

Caroline lay on the floor, limbs and body jerking independently of each other. She had begun to froth at the mouth and that mixed with some blood smeared there –someone had obviously figured out what she needed too late—creating a pink foam that slid down her cheek in a pitiful and painful display. Klaus, Elijah, someone she could only assume was Kol, and Sheila Bennett were kneeling around her and arguing save for her mother, Elena, and the youngest Bennett witch. Caroline's mother was sobbing along with Elena, while her best friend was apparently in shock. Someone had to take control. Raising her fingers to her lips, Katherine gave a sharp whistle that drew everyone's attention.

"When Caroline makes a plan to save herself, it's _not_ a good idea to change the party location and not inform everyone involved."

As always, there was a part of her that thrilled at surprising people. Usually, it was because she'd come up with an extremely cunning way to escape and thwart their plans. This time, it just happened to be because she walked right into the lion's den voluntarily. Still felt just as good. Quickly walking forward, she began barking commands.

"I'm going to need you people to hold her down and hold her _very_ still. Also, one of you boys is going to need to open a vein for our girl."

The last was said as she kneeled down to straddle Caroline's stomach. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Stefan begin to let go of Caroline's arm and shoulder to roll up his sleeve. Not surprising in the least. However, even as she pulled out the syringe to take some of his blood, Elijah was there at Caroline's head.

"Use my blood."

Honestly, she wasn't aware he'd become that attached. A smirk formed on her face as she watched him begin to unbutton his cuffs.

"We're vampires, Elijah. We go for the neck."

Without waiting for his reaction, she darted forward and forced his head back to plunge the needle in his carotid artery. She knew full well, of course, that she wouldn't have been able to do so without his cooperation. However, she did take a certain thrill at having him at her mercy like this. Call it payback for the five hundred years that he helped his brother hunt her down. There was no time to dwell on that, though; she had a former baby vampire to save. Silently thanking Caroline for being fond of low-cut tops, Katherine plunged the syringe through Caroline's breast bone and into her heart. Quickly depressing the plunger and pulling the needle back out, she waited.

It didn't take long for her to feel the tension leave Caroline's body and then for the blonde to turn and look up at her. Katherine was almost struck speechless by the look of _happiness_ that Caroline sent her as she whispered "You made it."

She let an indulgent smirk form on her lips as her head tilted.

"It's almost cute how you pretend you didn't completely con me into being here."

Katherine could only shake her head and give a small sigh at Caroline's answering grin, dimmed as it was. 

"Humanity is probably a vampire's greatest weakness. Still, I find I can't resist letting it out to play once in a while."

The laugh Caroline gave, while still weak, was slightly stronger than her voice had been. With a small, somewhat fond smile, she replied, "Don't worry, Katherine. No one is going to forget you're a ruthless bitch looking out for your own self-interest."

What should have been an insult felt like a compliment. It was honestly the first time in forever that Katherine could remember having gotten what she wanted out of someone without having to betray them.

"Oh, Care, you and I are going to have one _hell_ of an eternity. Now say goodnight."

And before anyone could react, Katherine reached down and broke the girl's neck with a decisive twist. 

If she hadn't been expecting it, Stefan's attack would have caught her off guard. However, knowing it was coming, she was able to use his momentum to force his body to flip over her. Before he knew what had happened, he was kneeling with one arm held out behind him while Katherine kept his wrist locked in place.

She was almost surprised he didn't struggle but completely expected his demanding question, "Why did you kill her? She could have stayed human!"

With that, Katherine laughed and all but threw his arm away from her. As he rolled over into a sitting position, she sneered down at him.

"You haven't been paying attention, lover. With that particular witch's brew running through her system, Caroline _couldn't_ have stayed human. I saved her from dying a convulsing mess in her own piss and shit.

"Besides, she's experienced first-hand that monsters are all too eager to torture her and the supposed heroes will do _nothing_ to help her."

Given that guilt that flashed in his eyes for a moment, it was clear Stefan knew exactly what she was talking about.

"She's not like you, Stefan, she's a survivor. She's like me and would _never_ choose to be weak."

She wasn't sure what struck a nerve with Stefan; that she called him out on not helping Caroline, or that there was a "good" vampire that didn't regret _being_ a vampire.

"You don't know anything about her, Katherine. She's not a monster like you."

And, apparently, it was the latter.

"That's where you're wrong, Stefan. I _do_ know, because she told me. This whole thing was her plan. She never even _considered_ trying to stay human."

Finally done with the conversation, Katherine looked around and took in the scene once more. Taking a deep breath, she zeroed in on Caroline's mother… on Liz. The look she was sending Katherine's way clearly said she wasn't shocked by the idea that her daughter was comfortable being a vampire.

"Take good care of our girl, Liz. When she wakes up, let her know I'm off to pick out the best birthday gift ever and I'll see her in a few months."

Katherine had no doubt that Caroline –and by extension everyone else—wouldn't have expected her to do any more than she already had. However, she didn't like owing anyone, so it was time to work on paying back Caroline for what she'd done. Besides, there were more than a few supernatural creatures she had screwed over who she did _not_ want coming back from the other side.

Before anyone could even think to stop her she had sped out of the house and was half way out of town. While her past 'transgressions' may have been forgiven by Klaus, she was still well aware that just being near him was skating on thin ice. She had a feeling that saving his newest little helper would only buy her so much leniency. Hopefully, out of sight would put her out of mind for a while.

What she didn't realize was that there was really no need for her to hurry. No one, save Elijah, seemed to notice that she had left. He spent a few moments staring at the door she had just exited through, trying to reconcile the vampire who had just saved Caroline with the selfish monster he and his brother had helped create. The thought of Klaus had him turning to look once again where Caroline lay, surrounded by more than a few people. 

Elijah hadn't been paying attention and apparently missed the beginning of an argument between Klaus and the elder Bennett witch. His brother seemed to quickly end it by rising, Caroline's body draped limply in his arms.

"The girl will remain here. Go or stay, the choice is yours. Now, if you'll excuse me, I must arrange a meal for when she wakes up."

Elijah watched as his brother turned to leave, but his attention was quickly caught by the resigned, yet steady voice of the younger Bennett. "There's probably blood in the medical bag Katherine brought. Caroline always plans ahead."

Kol was quick to pick up the satchel in question, pulling out a blood bag and holding it up.

"Caroline showed me a couple of these before. Only spent a minute trying to convince me to use them before she gave up."

He brought the bag close and made an exaggerated show of smelling it.

"The bags she showed me smelled of chemicals. This, smells of magic."

She quickly snatched the blood bag from him and turned to follow as Klaus went up the stairs, her grandmother just behind her. Kol watched after them, a smirk firmly in place, one which didn't falter when his sister sneered into his ear, "That's right, dear brother, you have been rather chummy with the baby vampire recently. Did you happen to find out what she's trying to weasel from us?"

While Elijah was inclined to ignore his sister's painfully obvious jealousy, Kol appeared to revel in it.

"She and I _have_ grown close this past week. She told me all about her plans for dealing with Silas and what she needs from us both."

When it became obvious Kol didn't intend to continue, Rebekah gave an impatient huff.

"Well, what does the little brat want from me?"

Kol's eyes got wide in faux surprise and he replied, amusement clear in his voice, "Why, _dear sister_ , I wouldn't want to deprive you of Caroline's charming company! I'm sure you'll enjoy it so much more hearing what she wants directly from the source herself."

Elijah watched as Kol gleefully jogged up the stairs after the Bennetts and their sister stormed off deep into the house. Before he could decide if it would be worth it to follow up the stairs and question either Klaus or Kol about Caroline's intentions, he became aware of a still presence beside him. Turning, he found Finn looking at him, a small smile on his face that didn't seem to reach his eyes.

"You look troubled, brother."

Ignoring how unsettled his brother's presence left him, Elijah decided to confide in him.

"Both of our brothers seem to be overly taken with the young vampire. I question her motives."

Finn continued to grace him with an almost blank stare as he questioned, "What is it that drives you to doubt her? Perhaps Klaus and Kol have simply spent enough time in her presence to find reason to trust her."

Elijah didn't bother to try and hide his distaste for that idea.

"Our brothers, _especially_ Klaus, do not trust that easily. I'd wager almost anything that the blood Katherine brought in is from the Bennett witches. They do seem unusually attached to Caroline. Perhaps they provided some magical encouragement to ensure our brothers would trust her."

The laugh that came from Finn was bitter and full of contempt.

"And yet you are somehow immune? Have you considered that you don't trust her because you're jealous of the influence you believe she has on Klaus?"

Elijah noticed that his smile now seemed cruel and his once blank gaze had the look of barely contained anger.

"To be honest, Elijah, I'm not inclined to question the girl's motives or even care if there _is_ some spell on Klaus on Kol. After all, she is the _only_ reason I'm not still confined in that hellish box."

Without waiting for a response, Finn turned and strode deep into the house. He was possibly going to join Sage who Klaus had summoned shortly after returning from his trip to kill their father. No doubt more of _Caroline's_ influence. If only Jonas hadn't left with his children, Greta less willingly than Luka, he could have them look into it. Given Maddox's fascination with the girl, he obviously couldn't be trusted with the matter.

Over the next three and half weeks, Elijah watched as Kol and Klaus seemed to fall more and more under Caroline's spell. Klaus looked almost pleased to hand over the member of Jules' pack he had just turned with the assistance of Elena's blood to Caroline's _father_ in order to break their sire bond. After the ritual the Bennett witches performed to ensure he would no longer _need_ a doppelgänger to make hybrids and his successful turning of Jules and the remaining members of her pack after, his look toward Caroline was full of… intent.

During the time between breaking his curse and ridding himself of the need for a doppelgänger, he could often be found wherever Kol and Caroline were. Kol, for his part, seemed to flirt in an over the top manner. For a while, Klaus would storm off when it got to be too much. After one such incident at a table outside the Mystic Grill which Elijah witnessed – he refused to think of what he was doing as spying on his brothers –, Caroline stared at Kol with her eyebrows raised, as if waiting for something. When Kol gave her a mockingly inquisitive look, she rolled her eyes.

"You need to talk to him."

Kol's expression quickly lost all amusement as he replied with deceptively calm voice, "You need to mind your own business."

Caroline showed no fear as she smiled brightly back at him.

"You're the one who wanted to, in your words mind you, be my new best girlfriend. Well, BFF, this is part of the package. I nag until you do what I think is best, usually because it is."

Kol leaned back, though he did seem a bit more indulgent as he did so.

"If I remember correctly, as my _BFF_ , you were supposed to tell me _everything_. That includes your involvement with one Katherine Peirce."

It was obvious this was an argument they'd had before, given Caroline's exasperated reaction. Her eyes once again rolling, she threw her hands in the air before she leaned back and crossed her arms.

"I didn't _intentionally_ hide that from you, and I was completely honest when you pointed out that I hadn't told you. Now, stop changing the subject."

With his own eye roll, a habit that he'd obviously picked up from Caroline, Kol responded, "Fine. I'll talk to him."

When Caroline continued to stare expectantly at him, he stood, lightly kissed her forehead, and pointedly said, "I'll just go do that now, then."

Elijah watched Caroline's pleased smile as she finished her meal and tried to calm the burning in his gut. As he strode away he also tried to ignore the voice which suspiciously sounded like Finn telling him it was jealousy he was feeling.

The last straw came when he found out over their mother's freshly bound and sealed remains that Klaus intended that only he, a couple of his hybrids, his pet witch, and _Caroline_ would be off on the hunt for more werewolves. It had been him, not some newly turned vampire too smart for her own good, that had stood by Klaus through so many centuries as he searched for a way to break the curse their mother had placed on him.

When he arrived at home and realized that, as had become his habit over the past month, Klaus had elected to _not_ be near his family, Elijah snapped. He sped over to Maddox's home, not even bothering with a car. His dismissal of the witch was curt and instantly obeyed. Klaus looked almost amused as he appraised his brother and this only enraged Elijah further. His voice, when he spoke, was controlled, but even he could hear the strain in it.

"Is there a reason, Niklaus, why you would choose to leave me behind on this venture when I have come this far with you in breaking your curse? Would you not have me witness the rewards of all our efforts?"

Klaus approached him with an indulgent smile and his hands, warmer than they had been before his curse was broken, came to rest gently on either side of Elijah's neck.

"Our father may be dead, Elijah, but I do not wish to leave our siblings alone when they know so little of this century. Mikael was not the only threat to our family. I need you to guide and protect them."

Fighting to keep the jealousy out of his voice, he asked, "And Caroline? You've been spending so much time planning with her and not your family. And now you're taking her with you to find more werewolves?"

Elijah could see by his brother's expression that he hadn't managed to completely hide his feelings. Klaus's smile was almost compassionate as he pulled Elijah toward him, resting their foreheads together.

"You don't trust her, brother. I can understand that. I, myself, doubt she is being completely honest about how she has acquired her information. However, I don't doubt her end goal.

"Aside from that, you've seen the people she's drawn to her, how loyal they become. You've always nagged at me, telling me I need to gather allies. She's the perfect ally!"

Finally, Elijah felt he could address a suspicion he had been harboring about the girl.

"Have you considered it could be magic, brother? She is abnormally close to the Bennett witches, perhaps they have… influenced those people who have offered up their loyalty."

Klaus not only appeared unworried by the thought, but a wide and manic grin spread across his face.

"What better reason to ensure she's on our side. If she's loyal to us, and they are loyal to _her_ , we cannot lose! I'm taking her on this trip, isolated from the others, as a means to both learn what she's withholding _and_ to endear myself to her. She is young and impressionable. Charm has been known to go a long way with those that are such."

With a sudden movement, Elijah had Klaus pinned to the wall, his arm pressed against his brother's throat.

"While you are _charming_ her, Niklaus, remember that she is not family. You cannot trust her as if she _were_ family."

A bitter sneer formed on his brother's lips as he replied, "As if family were to be trusted."

Sure that Klaus was referring to their parents; Elijah stared into his brother's eyes to make sure he understood.

"I have _never_ betrayed you, and I _never_ will."

As with so many arguments in the past, Klaus chose to end this one without words. It had been far too long, but the feel of his brother's mouth on his was achingly familiar, as was the anger and roughness of the kiss. He spared no thought for the expensive suit Klaus tore through, he simply gave himself up to his brother's demanding touch. It was only in these moments that he knew he had Klaus all to himself, that there was no other that could come between them. 

Over the next week, while Elijah was spying less and insinuating himself in Klaus' activities more, Liz was spending as much time as possible with Caroline. It was something she found a bit difficult given Kol and Klaus' apparent need to always be in her daughter's company. Both of the brothers left her feeling on edge and afraid for Caroline's safety.

Every night, however, they would spend time together, just the two of them. While Caroline promised she would come home safely, Liz still chose to cherish every moment. Too soon, the week was up and Liz was left watching as Caroline loaded up her luggage – "Do you really think I'm heading off for the summer and packing _lightly_?"— into Klaus' SUV. 

Liz was aware that, had Caroline not forbid it, Bonnie, Sheila, and most of the vampire population would have been standing there with her. They were content, for the most part, with the going away party that they had thrown for her. She had not attended, telling Caroline that she had to share her with the world enough; she wasn't up to seeing it play out literally. So, per Caroline's orders, last night and this morning had been just for the two of them. Now, however, she had to say a temporary goodbye to her daughter.

She didn't bother taking down the license plate number of Klaus' vehicle, but only because she had that and a detailed description of his Navigator written down in the house. Her daughter may have told her not to worry, but she wanted the information just in case.

Kol, Elijah, and, oddly enough, Finn were there to see their brother off, though Rebekah was nowhere in sight. She had only seen her once since Caroline's second – third? Did the other timeline count now? – transition. Then it had only been a polite though dismissive greeting once she had knocked on the door before she and Caroline were facing off on the front porch. Though the conversation itself wasn't all that confrontational, and yes she did listen in, their body language was. It didn't seem like this particular Mikaelson sibling was susceptible to Caroline's brand of charm.

While Kol was busy flirting with Caroline, making it obvious to everyone that it was primarily to rile up Klaus, Elijah approached Liz. Whereas before his flirting had felt natural and harmless, now it felt like it had a purpose. Given the way she had seen him watching Klaus and Caroline's interactions, she could only assume it had something to do with them. Instead of a quick kiss on the back of her hand, which still managed to catch her breath, he deliberately laid a kiss on the inside of her wrist.

Although a part of her thrilled at the sensation, she was very aware of the near growl that came from Caroline and the answering smirk that came from Elijah. Although he didn't go so far as to let Caroline see it, Liz was still far from amused. While he had appeared entertained by her daughter's reactions in the past, there was a maliciousness in it today that had all her motherly instincts sending up red flags. Apparently, something in her distaste showed, because Elijah's entire demeanor changed, and he nodded apologetically at her. While there was no reason to believe that it was the end of… whatever had been going on, she still felt something in her relax.

Quickly, though, she put the incident behind her as she watched Caroline leaving, going off into possible danger where her mother couldn't help her. She was aware that both Kol and Elijah left immediately after, though it took her a moment to realize that Finn was still standing silently with her. Turning, she saw that he was watching her, not the quickly disappearing cars. When she gave him a questioning smile, he returned an answering smile that looked somehow out of place on his face.

"Sheriff Forbes, I apologize for approaching you today. I'm sure you have enough to deal with."

At his glance in the direction of the now departed cars, Liz gave a rueful huff of laughter and shook her head.

"It's all part of being a parent, having your child go off where you can't watch over them. I'll be fine. Is there something I can do for you?"

At her question, he seemed to draw himself up as if delivering a life or death message. Without knowing why, part of Liz ached for the very serious young-old man standing before her.

"I find myself in debt to your daughter. Intentional or not, she has freed me from an unbearable situation, and honor demands I repay her. However, traveling with my brother would be ill advised for many reasons, so I cannot help her directly. What I can do is be at hand should _you_ need my assistance. I, of course, will offer the same to the younger Bennett, as the both of you are obviously very dear to Caroline."

Having apparently said his peace, Finn turned to leave. Before she knew what she was doing, Liz had called out for him to wait.

"I'm not really clear on vampire politics, or your family dynamics, but I am good at listening. I'm also very well versed on just about all things modern. So, if you need to talk, or have questions about anything… Obviously, you know where I live. Being the sheriff also means that it should be pretty easy to find me if you ever need to."

For a moment he stared at her blankly, and Liz began to feel uncomfortable. Had she overstepped some unknown boundary?

"I am… grateful for your offer. I do have to ask, though, why would you make it?"

_Because you look lost. Because you look so lonely it makes me ache. Because my baby is gone and I need to have someone to look after. Because…_

But she couldn't say any of those things to him for fear he'd take offense. Not many men like being looked at almost like a stray puppy.

"Probably for the same reason you're doing it. Because it's what Caroline would do if she were here."

This seemed to satisfy him, and he left after she had put her number into his phone, showing him how to do the same. Over the next week she did hear from him; his texts and visits coming only slightly less frequently then Caroline's daily updates. He would often ask about various everyday things such as credit cards, a driver's license, or how to set up and use a bank account. However, he would just as often show up, silently drink the tea she had begun stocking for him, and then just as quietly leave. She knew there was something he wanted to talk to her about, but she didn't press. He just didn't seem ready.

Today, however, he wouldn't be visiting. Kol had called – she didn't even bother questioning how he got her number – and informed her that he had let slip that Caroline was keeping her up to date on the werewolf hunting progress and she should be expecting a visit in a few hours. Liz also didn't question how he knew Caroline was keeping her in the loop. She also wasn't going to question why Elijah _wasn't_ being kept informed.

When she had called Finn – he seemed to prefer that to texting – and let him know that Elijah would probably be visiting, he thanked her and then said he couldn't make it today but would be looking forward to tea tomorrow. Mikaelson family dynamics were yet another thing she wasn't going to question. There was a _lot_ she just wasn't questioning these days. Life was easier that way.

She had just finished putting a kettle on the stove to heat – a new addition to go along with the afternoon tea with Finn – when she heard a knock at the door. Taking a deep breath, she schooled her features into a pleasant expression. Elijah may be under the impression that he was going to come in here, flirt a little, and leave with whatever information he wanted, but Elizabeth Forbes was not here to play cute human pet for any vampire. He would get his information, but there was definitely going to be a price. The thought had her fighting down a sly smirk as she opened the door.

"Good afternoon, Elijah. You're just in time for tea."

**Author's Note:**

> Characterization con-crit is very much welcomed. I will not add characters to the list until/unless they become 'regulars' in the story.


End file.
